Brown-Forman’s former chief brands officer, Matias Bentel, has joined brand owner & contract distiller MGP Ingredients as its CMO.
Bentel (below) was confirmed in his new role by Kansas-based MGP this week. The move comes almost a year on from his departure from Brown-Forman after a near 17-year stint that took in two-and-a-half years as market GM in Mexico and five years as chief brands officer, the company’s equivalent of the CMO role.
Prior to working for Brown-Forman, Bentel also worked for Diageo in Brazil from 2005 to 2007.
Details of who he is taking over from at MGP were not immediately available.
Also announced this week was the recruitment of Chris Wiseman as the group’s senior VP of operations. Wiseman transitions from manufacturing VP at US food company Schwan’s Co, the previous employer of MGP’s CEO, Julie Francis, who took the reins in July.
“We are excited to welcome Matias and Chris to MGP,” said Francis. “Matias brings decades of marketing experience in the alcohol beverage industry and a proven ability to build and grow brands. Chris has a strong track record of driving operational efficiency, building high-performing teams and improving reliability that delivers consistent results.
“Their appointments reflect our continued focus on building a strong leadership team to support MGP’s strategic growth agenda and underscore our commitment to strengthening operational execution.”
As well as the Penelope, Rebel, Remus and Yellowstone bourbons and El Mayor tequila brands, which are overseen by the Luxco unit, MGP also operates two distilleries, in Indiana and Kentucky as well as a tequila distillery in Arandas, Mexico.
