In a stock exchange filing on Thursday, the board of directors at United Breweries, under the control of Heineken, gave their approval for the appointment of Vivek Gupta as the company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, effective from September 25th.
Gupta will serve as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of UBL for a duration of five years.
Rishi Pardal resigned from the position of CEO earlier this year in February and had been in his six-month notice period. Since its acquisition of UBL in July 2021, the Dutch multinational brewing company Heineken NV has been actively integrating UBL into its operations.
Gupta, 47, holds an engineering degree and a Master’s in business management from IIM, Ahmedabad. Before joining UBL, he served as the Chief Business Officer at Udaan.com. Additionally, Gupta has had the experience of working as the Managing Director for P&G’s Australia and New Zealand business.
In a statement, the company highlighted that Gupta’s extensive background encompasses a wealth of experience in commercial and leadership positions within multinational corporations and emerging startups. He has worked across international markets and in India, cultivating a profound understanding of go-to-market channels and successfully managing intricate businesses in both traditional and digital landscapes.
He will assume the lead in driving the premiumization of UBL’s portfolio, with a specific emphasis on fortifying the iconic stature of Kingfisher, according to the statement.
“We are thrilled to have Vivek lead UBL at such a critical time. We recognize his resilience in building businesses and brands at a fast pace and in a complex environment,” Jacco van der Linden, Regional President APAC of Heineken, and Member of the UBL Board, said.
In the first quarter ending June 2023, the beer maker witnessed a decrease of 16.09 percent in its consolidated profit, which amounted to INR 136.34 crore. This decline was attributed to supply constraints, reduced inter-state sales, and the ongoing inflationary pressures. In comparison, during the same April-June quarter the previous year, the company had recorded a net profit of INR 162.50 crore.
During the quarter under review, UBL’s revenue from operations remained nearly unchanged at INR 5,243.01 crore, a marginal increase from INR 5,196.08 crore in the corresponding period of FY22.
As of 13:00, UBL’s shares were experiencing an uptick of more than 4 percent, in contrast to the relatively stable performance of the benchmark indices.
