Whisky maker William Grant & Sons has named Søren Hagh as its new chief executive officer, effective from 1 January 2024.
Hagh is currently in charge of Dutch brewing giant Heineken’s European operations and was previously its Italian MD and global marketing executive director. Before Heineken, he worked for L’Oreal in both marketing and in-market distribution management roles. Hagh built the foundations of his career with Lego, holding a number of marketing roles, latterly as global marketing director.
He will replace Glenn Gordon who will remain as a non-executive director. Gordon is a member of the Grant Gordon family that owns the business, and the great-great-grandson of founder William Grant.
A William Grant spokesperson said: “There is no doubt that Søren will provide strong leadership for the Company, as he brings a tremendous wealth of relevant experience to the business from his many years working in the drinks sector and with his substantial commercial and marketing experience building global consumer brands in a number of sectors.”
News of Hagh’s appointment comes after William Grant reported a profit after tax of £331.3m for the year ended December 31, 2022. This rise of 33.8% on the year before puts the company back on a pre-pandemic footing. Turnover was up 21.7% to £1.72bn.
The spokesperson concluded: “With Søren’s leadership the business is well positioned for consistent growth in the long term, while maintaining customer loyalty in its 200 markets around the world.”
