Steve Lesnard

Steve Lesnard was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Yerba Madre, the US category leader in yerba mate, effective July 20, 2026. Lesnard brings more than two decades of brand and business-building experience and has served on the company's Board of Directors, succeeding Ben Mand. He has spent his career building brands people love — and scaling them while preserving their authenticity, according to Yerba Madre's Board Chair.

At Nike, Lesnard was pivotal in the development of the Women's, Olympics, and Running categories, and helped bring to market some of the industry's defining innovations, including Nike+, the LunarGlide, Nike React, and the Vaporfly. His last role with Nike was as the Global General Manager & Executive Vice President of the running category. After Nike, Steve moved to The North Face as the Head of Product Creation and Global Chief Marketing Officer to help reposition the brand as an outdoor leader and head up the company's expansion into China.

Career history

• Chief Executive Officer, Yerba Madre (July 2026–present)
• President, Godiva (May 2024) – leading global brand management and innovation in luxury chocolate
• Global Chief Brand Officer and President of Private Label Business, Sephora – helped the largest beauty retailer return to double-digit growth globally after the pandemic
• Head of Product Creation and Global Chief Marketing Officer, The North Face
• Global General Manager & Executive Vice President of Running Category, Nike (over a decade in various roles)

Lesnard earned his MBA in the United States and holds an MBA in Business and Entrepreneurship from Babson College in Massachusetts. Although Steve Lesnard grew up on the French island of Corsica, he has a uniquely global perspective on product and brand marketing and managed multinational teams across the span of his decades-long career.

What Steve Lesnard could bring to Chief Executive Officer at Yerba Madre: Lesnard's appointment represents a strategic shift from operational foundation-building to brand scaling and innovation. His proven track record—developing women's athletic wear into a multi-billion-dollar division at Nike, launching category-defining innovations, and steering legacy brands through transformation at The North Face and Sephora—positions him to accelerate Yerba Madre's growth while maintaining its mission-driven identity. His expertise in omnichannel expansion and global brand positioning suggests he will likely focus on expanding distribution, developing new product innovations, and elevating Yerba Madre's premium positioning in the competitive beverage market.