We continue our series of CEO interviews looking back at 2023 and forward to 2024 with Greg Hughes, who took over at the helm of Beam Suntory in October.
Global Drinks Intel: What was your overriding takeaway from 2023?
Beam Suntory CEO Greg Hughes: Last year presented some challenges, particularly with a slowdown in consumer demand in the US as the category resets post-Covid. However, we delivered strong results from our premiumisation strategy, our strength in whisky/whiskey, tequila, and in our RTD business. As a global spirits leader, we benefit from our geographic diversity and saw strong demand for our portfolio across our international region and in Asia.
We continued to accelerate our premiumisation strategy, RTD ambitions, build our brands and invest in operations, talent and capability. We’re confident that we can execute against our ambitions in 2024.
GDI: Which industry development surprised you the most last year?
GH: I’m very pleased to see how people continue to turn to spirits for a wider variety of occasions, and that spirits continues to take market share from beer and wine. Our industry is very resilient, and we continue to shape trends and deliver superior quality that is driving demand.
GDI: Which consumer group will be your main focus next year?
GH: Our focus is on delivering exceptional quality, craftsmanship and experiences for a wide range of LDA consumers around the world through our portfolio of brands. We see particularly strong growth opportunities in emerging Asia and India and with increasingly culturally diverse US consumers.
We’re excited about the innovations we’ll be introducing next year across brands including Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark, House of Suntory and On The Rocks.
GDI: Which of the brands in your portfolio do you expect to grow the fastest this year?
GH: We expect consumer demand for spirits to remain strong next year and are focusing on even stronger in-market execution and support for our key categories like premium-plus American whiskey, tequila, Japanese spirits and RTDs.
GDI: What’s your biggest business worry for the year ahead?
GH: Since becoming CEO in October, I’ve been focused on ensuring that our organisation is set up for the future and that we are anchoring our ambitions in robust global consumer trends and insights and deep analytics.
Our industry is inundated with data and new AI tools, so one of my key priorities is to make sure we’re integrating this data as quickly as possible to deliver on consumer needs, without losing the element of human understanding. We must always confirm that what we’re delivering is in fact resonating in the market and generating growth for our business.
Global Drinks Intel Review of the Year – The top interviews of 2023
