Swiss fragrance and flavour maker Givaudan reported first-half core earnings above expectations, driven by a strong performance in its fragrance business in particular, and appointed a new finance chief on Tuesday.

Givaudan said its current head of corporate finance and business development, Stewart Harris, would take over as the chief financial officer from Aug. 1, succeeding Tom Hallam who will retire.

Its half-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization rose 18.7% to 906 million Swiss francs ($1.02 billion) on a reported basis, ahead of analysts’ average forecast of 875 million francs in a poll compiled by the company.

A wave of destocking amid softer demand hit Givaudan’s volumes last year, but strong sales growth has boosted its profitability since then.

Its core profit margin increased to 24.8% in the first six months of 2024 on a comparable basis, from 22.7% a year earlier, helped by higher cost absorption thanks to higher volumes.

First-half sales rose 12.5% to 3.74 billion Swiss francs on a like-for-like basis, roughly in line with the 12.4% growth expected by analysts.

Sales at its Taste & Wellbeing business, which makes up more than a half of Givaudan’s revenue, were up by almost 10% from a year earlier, while sales at the Fragrance & Beauty unit rose 15.3%, both on a like-for-like basis.