Vermont-based WhistlePig Whiskey is preparing for a change at the top as Jeff Kozak is stepping down as CEO.
Kozak, who left Diageo in early 2014 to join the company, is moving on “to pursue other opportunities”. Replacing him on an interim basis is Marty Birkel (below), whose career has included 14 years with Constellation Brands, almost three of which were as president of the Ballast Point Brewery business in San Diego.
A board member at WhistlePig since 2019 when he left Ballast Point, Birkel will take the reins temporarily while an “external search” for a permanent CEO is undertaken.
“The board of directors is grateful for Jeff’s contributions over the past ten years, which have helped establish WhistlePig as a distinctive leader in the super premium American whiskey category and grow our company to over US$100m in sales,” said co-founder & chair Wilco Faessen. “As WhistlePig enters its next growth chapter, we are excited to continue to push the boundaries of quality, innovation and independence, with the goal of becoming the American whiskey of choice for consumers around the world.”
In March last year, WhistlePig secured a 40-state distribution deal in the US with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits.
