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International
Beverage announces two senior
appointments: New Distilleries General
Manager and Marketing Director.
In Whisky Business news
International Beverage announced today
(27th August) the appointment of two
senior leaders as the company enters a
phase of ambitious growth. The
experienced pair will assume strategic
roles within the global spirits
producer's team, focusing on driving the
success of its expanding portfolio of
award-winning brands.
John Stevenson Joins as Distilleries
General Manager
John Stevenson, an accomplished Projects
Director and Executive, brings extensive
experience in building and developing
teams to deliver complex programs. He
played a pivotal role in designing and
constructing Ireland’s first major
whisky distillery in a century and
Scotland’s first waste-to-fuel ABE
biorefinery utilising whisky industry
by-products. John holds an MBA in
Engineering Management from the
University of Bristol and began his
career in the water industry before
transitioning to the whisky sector in
1996.
In recent years, John has taken on
various roles, starting as a Project
Director in the bio-fuel sector with
Celtic Renewables. After a four-year
tenure, he became a Freelance Projects
Director at 58 Seasgad Limited, where he
supported biotech start-ups in scaling
up novel technologies. In 2023, he moved
to North British Distillery Limited as
an Operations Manager, where he
developed a comprehensive five-year
capital investment plan and provided
technical support, training, and
architectural solutions.
At International Beverage, John will
oversee operations at the company’s five
Scottish distilleries, responsible for
producing Old Pulteney, Speyburn,
Balblair, and anCnoc single malt
whiskies, Hankey Bannister blended
whisky, and Caorunn Gin.
Fiona Kennie Joins as Marketing Director
Fiona Kennie, a Strathclyde University
graduate, began her career in 2001 at
Jim Beam. She has since held several
senior marketing positions, making
significant contributions at Whyte &
Mackay, Heineken, and Edrington. With 25
years of experience in brand building
within the drinks industry, particularly
in premium and luxury whisky, Fiona has
driven strategic growth for global
brands across domestic, international,
and global travel retail markets.
Most recently, Fiona served as Group
Marketing Director in the craft beer
industry, where she further honed her
brand-building expertise. She returns to
the spirits industry with a passion for
brand development and strong leadership
skills, joining International Beverage
as Marketing Director. In this role,
Fiona will lead strategic marketing for
the global spirits business and join the
Executive Leadership Team as the company
embarks on its brand growth journey.
Both John and Fiona will be based at the
company’s Airdrie headquarters,
reporting into International Beverage
Managing Director Malcolm Leask. He
commented: "We are delighted to welcome
both John and Fiona to the business.
Their leadership skills and vast
experience in their respective sectors
makes them a tremendous asset to our
team. I look forward to working with
them over the coming months on a variety
of initiatives that will grow our global
business, sustainability credentials and
portfolio of premium spirit brands."
As the spirits division of ThaiBev, one
of the world’s top ten drinks producers,
International Beverage manages the
global sales, marketing, and
distribution of a multi-award-winning
portfolio of premium brands. This
includes single malt Scotch whiskies
such as Old Pulteney, Speyburn,
Balblair, and anCnoc; the blended Scotch
Hankey Bannister; the Larsen Cognac
portfolio; spirits from New Zealand’s
Cardrona Distillery; and Caorunn, a
small-batch Scottish gin.
You will find Inetrnational Beverages range of whiskies available from specialist online whisky
shops such as
The Whisky Exchange
and
Master of Malt
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