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John Melo is leaving his post as chief executive of biotechnology and beauty company Amyris and stepping down from the company’s board of directors, according to a statement. The departure is effective immediately.
Amyris is the owner of several beauty brands, with a focus in the celebrity space. Those include hair care brand JVN from “Queer Eye” star Jonathan Van Ness, model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley’s makeup and skin care label Rose Inc. and Costa Brazil, former Calvin Klein designer Francisco Costa’s skin care line, as well as skin care brand Biossance. It also developed a form of the ingredient squalane that is derived from sugarcane, though fragrance giant Givaudan acquired that ingredient (among others) from the company earlier this year.
Han Kieftenbeld, the company’s chief financial officer, will step in as interim CEO and retain his position as CFO. Amyris will also lay off an undisclosed amount of employees in an attempt to reduce costs by up to $250 million, according to a company statement. It also hired PricewaterhouseCoopers to reach those cost-cutting goals earlier this year.
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