News

Southern Glazer’s appoints chief transformation officer

17 November 2023 By James Evison

Distributor Southern Glazer’s has announced Mike McLaughlin as chief transformation officer from February 2024 in order to lead a part of the company, North Star.

The new North Star set-up will see McLaughlin report into the firm’s CEO Wayne E. Chaplin on the North Star business, which focuses on modernising and standardising ways of working and technology for the company’s customers and partners, it said.

Prior to his most recent position as regional president of the central region of the firm, McLaughlin was executive vice president of sales at Glazer’s Distributors since 2013.

Before joining Glazer’s, McLaughlin has more than 30 years of experience in the alcohol industry, including management positions with Alaska Distributors, Skyy Spirits, and Frank-Lin Distillers. An announcement for his replacement in the central region will follow, the firm said.

Throughout this past year, the company began the creation of North Star, using a number of experts to assess its core processes and ensure it was delivering “maximum value” to its suppliers and customers, “while offering modern capabilities that allow Southern Glazer’s to attract and retain top talent”, it said.

Chaplin said the company planned to “build on our previous successes” and to differentiate it in the market the firm “must constantly anticipate the changing customer and supplier needs.”

He said: “(We must) evolve our processes and capabilities to ensure we remain at the forefront of the beverage alcohol distribution industry.

“Mike is a trusted and respected leader with a clear vision for the future, a track record of strong operational results, and a proven ability to drive enterprise-wide change, which makes him the ideal leader for this transformative role.”

Logistics

It follows the company’s announcement last week that it had launched the wholly-owned subsidiary Ankaa Global Logistics as a “premier logistics service provider” for the drinks industry.

Currently located across two bases in Kentucky and California, Ankaa plans to open another facility in Florida in 2024, and claims to have “unparalleled services, and inventory transparency”.

The new logistics business intends to offer expanded storage capacity for the industry “at a competitive price”, driving increased speed to market, and bringing products closer to customers.

Ferrari Trento unveils F1 podium bottle for Vegas race

What the US wine industry needs from its next agriculture secretary