Eveline Albarracin appointed SVP, MD of Brown-Forman's new APAC region

Brown-Forman has announced the appointment of Eveline Albarracin as Senior Vice President, Managing Director for its newly re-established APAC region. In her new role, Albarracin will oversee markets across Asia, India, Australia, New Zealand and Pacific Islands. 

Eveline Albarracin will be assuming the new position following over four years of experience in Brown-Forman Managing Director roles. This includes her original role as Managing Director Australia, New Zealand, and Pacific Islands (ANZPI), which later grew to include India, the Middle East, North America (IMENA), and Türkiye in 2022. 

In addition to this, Albarracin is also a current Non Executive Board Member of Spirits & Cocktails Australia and DrinkWise, along with an Executive Sponsor of Brown-Forman's GROW ANZPI employee resource group.

Michael Masick, Brown-Forman’s Executive Vice President and President, Emerging International, said: "Eveline’s extensive business acumen and expertise are invaluable in this pivotal role. As one of Brown-Forman's most promising growth opportunities, we are confident in APAC's continued success and expansion under her outstanding leadership."

As part of her new role, Albarracin will relocate to Brown-Forman's Singapore office. Brown-Forman has indicated that it will soon commence recruitment for the vacated Sydney-based position of Managing Director ANZPI by conducting a global internal and external search. 

The newly formed APAC region marks a return to the Brown-Forman company structure in place prior to October 2013, where Brown-Forman's Asia Pacific region was restructured into ANZSEA (Australia, New Zealand, and Southeast Asia region) and NA (North Asia). At the time, Executive Vice President Europe/Africa/Asia Pacific/Travel Retail said "these changes are being made to further strengthen our organisational focus and allocation of resources against our strategic priorities in this vast region.”

Today’s announcement also follows on from a recent change to Brown-Forman's global executive leadership team, which saw Diane Nguyen replace Kirsten Hawley as the new Chief People, Places, and Communications Officer. First announced mid June, this staff change is scheduled to come into effect from Friday 9 May.

“I am delighted to welcome Diane to the role of chief people, places, and communications officer and to our executive leadership team,” said Lawson Whiting, Brown-Forman’s CEO and President. 

“Her human resources experience, strategic talent management expertise, dedication to our culture, and cross-cultural business acumen make her an exceptionally well-suited leader for this role.”

Diane Nguyen will step into the position having already spent 16 years with the company. This includes almost 2.5 years as Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Global Commercial & Corporate Teams.

The news follows on from Kirsten Hawley, current Chief People, Places, and Communications Officer Kirsten Hawley, announcing her intent to retire last month. 

Today, Brown-Forman is responsible for a diverse global portfolio that includes brands such as Jack Daniel’s, Woodford Reserve, Old Forester, Chambord, Jagermeister, El Jimador and Casa Herradura. It is now a major player in single malt scotch, with brands such as The GlenDronach and Benriach having earned significant recognition on the global stage.

Jack Daniel's continues to be Australia's leading dark spirit, claiming the title of 2024 Australian Drinks Awards Fan Favourite Dark Spirit for the fifth year in a row. Key factors influencing consumer voting for Jack Daniel’s was because of availability and taste. One consumer wrote: “it’s a brand I’ve had for years and trust. Flavour never lets me down. Always a personal and party favourite.”

The re-established APAC company division also comes at a time of growing pressure on the spirits industry, with the spirits tax about to increase again on Monday 5 August. Kylie McPherson, Vice President and director of Public Affairs at Brown-Forman Australia, recently told the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Industry, Science and Resources that “the current conditions and the uncertainty borne of Australia’s excise regime – which is the third highest spirits tax in the world – are inhibitors for global companies like ours making such an investment in this market.”

To read more about McPherson’s reflection on Australia’s spirits sector, read this article.