India: United Breweries appoints Vivek Gupta as Managing Director and CEO

United Breweries Ltd (UBL), now part of Dutch brewing firm Heineken, on September 7 announced appointment of Vivek Gupta as Managing Director and CEO of the company, the Deccan Herald reported.

Gupta, 47, joins UBL from B2B online trade platform Udaan.com and his appointment will be effective from September 25, 2023.

The UBL board at its meeting held on Thursday approved the appointment of Gupta as MD & CEO of the company, said regulatory filing from the company which owns iconic beer brand Kingfisher.

Besides, he has been appointed as an additional director on the board, it added.

The appointment will be subject to approval of the shareholders of the company, UBL added.

Gupta, an engineering graduate with a Master’s in business management from IIM, Ahmedabad, has experience in working with homegrown Indian and global companies.

He shall hold office as MD & CEO for a period of five years with effect from September 25, 2023, which will be extendable subject to approval of the shareholders, the filing said.

Gupta has spent over two decades in leadership and commercial roles at P&G . His last position with P&G was as managing director of Australia and New Zealand.

On Gupta's appointment, Jacco van der Linden, Regional President APAC of Heineken and a member of the UBL board, said: "We recognise his resilience in building businesses and brands at a fast pace and in a complex environment. He brings solid global experience deeply rooted in India and has had substantial success in commercial and complex companies in traditional and digital environments.”

Headquartered at Bengaluru, UBL is the largest beer manufacturer in India. Its portfolio comprises brands such as Kingfisher, Heineken, Amstel, and Kingfisher Premium Water, Kingfisher Soda.

07 September, 2023