Budweiser Brewing Group has appointed Brian Perkins as its new president for the UK & Ireland, The Grocer can reveal.
Perkins, a 10-year veteran of the Budweiser and Stella owner, has been promoted from zone Europe commercial and marketing VP. As president he will report to parent company AB InBev’s zone president for Europe Jason Warner. Perkins will also lead its Spanish business.
He takes the reins from outgoing president Paula Lindenberg, who is leaving Budweiser Brewing Group ”due to family reasons”.
The megabrewer was “at an inflection point on our journey”, said Warner. “With the most penetrated brand portfolio in the UK, it’s clear that the future is going to be bright for us, and I wanted to bring in a heavyweight to really stamp that future for us.”
Perkins was “a consumer-centric marketer, with a very strong operational skill set”, he added. “He’s going to be very good at translating category strategy with customer strategy, to deliver a value equation that works for everybody.”
Perkins said he was looking forward to kickstarting a “very robust innovation agenda for next year” while also going “full steam ahead on our power brands”.
The UK was “a market that leads in terms of portfolio thinking, that leads in terms of new ideas and innovation”, he said.
The on-trade would be a major focus, he added, Budweiser having just signed a 20-year supply deal with pub group JD Wetherspoon. “It’s a sign of what’s to come,” he said.
The news comes on the back of a stellar year for Budweiser Brewing Group’s biggest sellers: Budweiser, Stella and Corona added a combined £38.96m to their value over the year to 11 September, on volumes up 1.5%, 5% and 7.2% respectively [NielsenIQ].
It was “a difficult decision to leave Budweiser Brewing Group UK&I”, said Paula Lindenberg.
“I feel truly privileged to have worked with such a talented, committed and resilient team who have inspired me every day. Despite some challenging times, together, we have achieved incredible results, grown the business, become more efficient, led on sustainability and supported our communities.”
No comments yet