Diageo appoints exclusive broker for Canada

Diageo has appointed Wirtz Beverage Group as the exclusive broker for its spirits, beer, wine and RTD brands in Canada.

Diageo has appointed Wirtz Beverage Group as its exclusive broker in Canada

The deal will see the creation of a new brokerage entity – Wirtz Beverage Canada – that has been described as an “important milestone in Diageo’s route to consumer strategy”.

Under the new broker agreement, Diageo’s brands will be represented by a dedicated sales team – meaning that many of the group’s current sales employees will transition into roles within Wirtz Beverage Canada, which will be headed by Julian Burzynski, Wirtz Beverage executive vice president.

“I strongly believe that this is the right move for Diageo Canada,” said Larry Schwartz, president of Diageo North America. “As a business, we must continually adapt to the market, which is why improving our route to consumer has been a priority for our company.

“We have seen the benefits of this model in other parts of the world and can see how it will make Canada a more agile and efficient business allowing us to further invest in Diageo and our brands.”

Diageo also announced that its Canada business would be led by a new president, Jakob Ripshtein, who will replace Maggie Lapcewich.

This role and the new broker agreement will come into affect on 1 July 2014.

Wirtz Beverage Group president Rocky Wirtz said: “Diageo and Wirtz Beverage have a long history of proven results, and we are eager to build on that success.

“We will leverage our commercial sales expertise with training and development programs, market analytics and technology tools to support the Diageo brands across Canada, and we look forward to working closely with the country’s liquor boards.”