We take a look at some of the companies welcoming new faces to top jobs.
We take a look at some of the companies welcoming new faces to top jobs.
Pernod Ricard has appointed Conor McQuaid as CEO of North America (USA & Canada), effective the 1st of January 2024.
McQuaid, a 25-year veteran of Pernod Ricard, will be based in New York. He succeeds Ann Mukherjee, who has decided to step down to focus her time and energy on her family’s well-being.
The US is the top market for Paris-headquartered wine and spirits giant Pernod Ricard.
McQuaid has held various leadership positions in diverse roles across the company, most recently serving as Executive Vice President Sustainability & Responsibility, Communications and Public Affairs and as a member of Pernod Ricard’s Executive Committee. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of Irish Distillers (Jameson) and Executive Vice President Global Business Development.
His experience covers corporate functions, market and brand companies.
McQuaid holds a degree in International Marketing & Spanish from Dublin City University (Ireland) and Universidad de Sevilla in Spain. Having begun his career in Ireland with Golden Vale Group plc, he joined Irish Distillers Pernod Ricard in 1998 where he held several senior management positions including Global Brand Development Director of Irish Distillers in July 2005, joining the Irish Distillers Executive Committee.
McQuaid became Managing Director of Pernod Ricard South Africa in 2011; followed by the position of EVP Global Business Development for the Pernod Ricard Group in 2014; and Chairman and CEO of Irish Distillers in 2018.
As a member of the Executive Committee (and COMEX) since 2015, he has contributed to shaping the Pernod Ricard business strategy, including in his most recent role as Executive Vice President S&R, Corporate Communications and Public Affairs since July 2022.
Australian-headquartered Accolade Wines has appointed Derek Nicol to the position of Managing Director, Europe.
Nicol brings extensive global experience to the new role, having served in commercial, supply chain and finance functions across the wine and spirits sectors internationally. Before joining Accolade in 2020, he served as Regional Operating Officer for EMEA and Supply Chain Director, EMEA and Asia, for Treasury Wine Estates.
As part of the change, Joe Russo will succeed Nicol as Chief Supply Chain Officer. Russo is currently General Manager of Supply Chain and Operations for Australia and New Zealand and has been with Accolade Wines for the last four years.
Russo brings a wealth of experience in all facets of supply chain management: having previously held senior supply chain roles with Diageo, Mondelez and Lion.
The changes will take effect on 1 February 2024.
They follow the resignation of Caroline Thompson-Hill to pursue an opportunity in the UK retail sector. She leaves after four years in the role, having led the European business through a period of ‘transformational change’ with Accolade Wines delivering consistent above-market growth and Hardys retaining its position as the UK’s number one wine brand.
Guinness Nigeria has appointed Adebayo Alli (Bayo) as its next Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of the Company with effect from January 1, 2024.
This appointment by the Board follows the imminent move of John Musunga, the current MD/CEO, into another role within Diageo as the first Managing Director for Southern, West and Centra Africa (SWC).
Adebayo Alli joined Diageo in 2005 as a Packaging Operations Support Manager and has worked in several senior leadership roles across manufacturing, supply and commercial. He is described as a well-rounded executive with almost two decades of broad experience and leadership across supply chain, manufacturing, program management and sales.
In 2013 Bayo moved to Ethiopia on International Assignment to join Diageo’s Meta Abo Brewery Limited’s leadership team as the project lead for a business transformation project. He was subsequently promoted to Plant Manager in 2014 and appointed Supply Chain Director in 2015.
He returned to Nigeria in 2017 as Operations Director before transitioning to commercial: taking up several senior commercial sales roles in Guinness Nigeria PLC. Between 2019 and 2020, Bayo was appointed and served briefly as the as the Director for IPS, Reserve & Modern Trade. In 2020, Bayo was appointed as the Commercial Director Guinness Nigeria.
In his current role as the Commercial Director, he is credited with transforming the commercial team in Guinness Nigeria to one with a digital focused mindset and has successfully leveraged technological solutions to drive incremental growth, deliver productivity, embed operational safety, and sustain market share growth.
“Bayo is known for his deliberate focus on people and his many bold bets across supply and commercial has helped unlock business and personal growth for many of his colleagues thereby ensuring robust succession plans,” states the Guinness Nigeria as it announced the appointment. “His purpose is to add value to the world by inspiring others especially Africans to cause the transformations he wants to see and leave everything better than he met it.”
Alli holds a BSc in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Ibadan, and an MSc in Advanced Process Engineering from Loughborough University, United Kingdom.
Apura Ingredients, a US provider of reduced-sugar and no-sugar ingredient solutions, has appointed Katharina Pueller as Senior Business Development Manager, U.S. Western Territory.
Pueller brings seven years of expertise in global account planning and development in sweeteners, flavors, specialty ingredients, and taste solutions for the food and beverage manufacturing industry. In her most recent business development role at Sweegen, she cultivated new business relationships while spearheading the company's innovation sessions. These sessions served as a platform for introducing key accounts to marketplace opportunities, fostering exponential growth.
With a 16-year career that began in her native Austria, Pueller has played crucial roles in organizational development, purchasing, and white-collar recruiting across multiple organizations.
Her primary focus at Apura will be to provide sweetener and taste modulation solutions to new and established players in the food, beverage, specialty, and pharmaceutical manufacturing sectors within the U.S. Western Territory.
Mangrove Global has welcomed experienced spirits ambassador Stefanie Holt as Curator of Mangrove World Whisky.
Holt brings a host of experience in brand advocacy to the team where she will drive the strategy for whisky brands across education, marketing, and sales to the on and off trade.
Mangrove’s world whisky portfolio features a range of international spirits, including Stauning from Denmark, Abasolo from Mexico, Uncle Nearest from the USA, and Yamazakura from Japan.
“My job is to take new and existing whisky drinkers on a journey through our extensive portfolio,” said Holt. “The audience for world whisky is so much more diverse than that of your standard scotch. They’re explorers. Younger, more open-minded, and there’s more women too!”
In recent years, Holt has acted as a mentor for the OurWhisky Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation that encourages more women working in the spirits industry and supports their roles.
The flavor of whisky is influenced by how and where it is produced - which is part of the reason why world whisky is becoming increasingly of interest to whisky fans across the UK.
“World whisky producers aren’t as hampered by tradition in the same way that scotch is,” continued Holt. “And so, there’s heaps of creativity being poured into these spirits. Whether it’s floor-malting rye, tropical aging, using heritage grains or being the first whisky distillery in a country/region – the variety of flavor profiles is extraordinary.”
The UK's Lyme Bay winery has appointed Sarah Massey as its new Head Winemaker.
Having joined Lyme Bay Winery four years ago, Massey will now – in her new role – become responsible for overseeing all aspects of the still and sparkling winemaking process at Lyme Bay Winery.
This includes working closely with the vineyard owners and growers, selecting the finest grapes, and ensuring the production of exceptional wines that reflect the unique and different terroirs the winery works with.
Massey will also oversee production of the other premium products within the portfolio including, the award-winning Jack Ratt Mead, Jack Ratt Lugger Spiced and Golden Rum, Fruit Wines and Devon Gins.
