Anheuser-Busch InBev has appointed Yanjun Cheng as CEO of its Budweiser Brewing Co APAC regional division.
Cheng (below), the current global supply operations chief, will replace Jan Craps from the start of April as the latter prepares to leave the group “to pursue other opportunities”. The company revealed the change shortly after posting another challenging quarter in its ‘Asia Pacific’ reporting region, which saw sales decline by 10.9%.
Craps will step away after seven years at the helm of the Asian unit, and 23 years with the group in total. Prior to an initial stint in the region, Craps was CEO of Labatt Breweries, AB InBev’s Canadian division.
Cheng will take the reins after 29 years at Bud APAC, having served as supply & logistics VP since 2009.
“We are grateful to Jan for his leadership of Bud APAC and for his contributions and results over two decades at AB InBev in leadership roles across Europe, North America and Asia,” said group CEO Michel Doukeris. “YJ Cheng’s appointment reflects his tremendous track record at AB InBev. The board has witnessed first-hand YJ’s decisive leadership execution and his ability to build winning teams.”
The ‘Asia Pacific’ region was the only major blemish in an otherwise positive set of results for the Bud Light owner’s Q4, as sales grew 3.4% to US$14.84bn. For the full year, the top line increased 2.7% to $59.77bn.
