Marnie Millard is to take the helm at soft drinks manufacturer Nichols following CEO Brendan Hynes’ decision to step down in May.

Hynes, who has worked at Nichols for 10 years and took on the CEO role in November 2007, said he was leaving to pursue a non-executive portfolio career. However, he would be available to help with the handover until the end of this year.

“After 10 happy years with Nichols, I have taken the difficult decision to leave a highly successful business and move on to the next stage of my career,” he said. “The business has changed beyond all recognition over the past 10 years and it has been a real pleasure to have worked with a great team and great brands and to have played a key part in building the strong, globally successful business that we are today.”

Millard is currently MD of Nichols’ Vimto Soft Drinks business. She moved to that role in December, having previously been commercial director for Gerber Juice. She has 17 years’ experience in soft drinks, and has worked for Refresco and Macaw Soft Drinks. When Millard took on the Vimto MD role, she said she planned to use her passion for innovation and product development to grow the business.

Nichols’ non-executive chairman John Nichols said: “Marnie’s deep understanding of the soft drinks industry, combined with her leadership skills, energy and enthusiasm, means she is well-positioned to drive our continued success, while ensuring a seamless transition.”

He added: “Brendan has been instrumental in the transformation of Nichols into an international, highly successful, branded soft drinks business.”

This week, Nichols reported a 13% increase in pre-tax profits to £20.5m, on sales up 9% to £107.8m in the year to 31 December 2012.

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