After informing the Supervisory Board, CEO Kai-Ulrich Deissner will step down from the position due to personal reasons, the Board has decided that Remko Rijnders will take Deissner’s role, effective from the 1st of July 2026. Additionally, CECONOMY has appointed Jan Niclas Brandt as Chief Customer Officer, taking effect on 1 April 2026.
The company’s CEO-designate, Remko Rijnders has been working for MediaMarktSaturn in various management roles for 17 years and has been the Group’s Chief Financial Officer since May 2025. Before that, Rijnders served as Chief Operating Officer of MediaMarktSaturn Retail Group and headed the operating business on the BeNeLux countries, in Spain, Poland, and Turkey.
Since 1 April 2024, Jan Niclas Brandt has been CEO of Austria and Switzerland. Before that, he was Chief Commercial Officer at MediaMarkt Austria and VP Corporate Strategy at MediaMarktSaturn Retail Group.
“As much as we regret the departure of Kai-Ulrich Deissner, we are equally pleased to be able to appoint an outstanding new CEO in Remko Rijnders. Rijnders has actively helped shape the company’s strategy in recent years and, as part of the Management Board, has given key initiatives. He has excellent operational and strategic experience and will provide the company with continuity for the next chapter of growth. With Jan Niclas Brandt as Chief Customer Officer, we are delivering on our strategic ambition to put our customers at the center. The Management Board will from now on actively shape the transition until 30 June 2026.”
Christoph Vilanek, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of CECONOMY AG
“I would like to thank the Supervisory Board for their trust – and above all our teams for their great performance in recent years. We have achieved a lot, but our ambitions remain high, because we want to actively shape and lead the market in Europe. Kai-Ulrich Deissner has laid the groundwork for this – my sincere thanks to him for that and for the excellent collaboration.”
Remko Rijnders, current CFO and future CEO of CECONOMY AG,
“Customer focus is an integral part of our strategy. As we advance on our journey from a traditional retailer to an omnichannel service platform, we will place our customers’ needs even more firmly at the center of everything we do. I would like to thank the Supervisory Board for their trust and I look forward to continuing to shape this journey together.”
Jan Niclas Brandt, designated Chief Customer Officer of CECONOMY AG
“It is an honour to lead this company, and I am fully committed to ensuring a seamless handover in the coming weeks. I have immense confidence in Remko and the entire leadership team. I am certain that the company is in the best possible hands.”
Kai-Ulrich Deissner, CEO of CECONOMY AG
(dp)
