Bill Newlands joins Constellation Brands board

Incoming Constellation Brands CEO Bill Newlands has been appointed to the US firm’s board of directors.

Bill Newlands will become CEO of Constellation Brands on 1 March

Newlands is currently president and chief operating officer at Svedka vodka maker Constellation Brands, but will take over from Rob Sands as CEO on 1 March.

With Newlands’ appointment, the board of Constellation Brands will increase from 12 members to 13.

“Constellation is well positioned for continued success with a strong portfolio of brands that align with consumer trends and that provides significant runway for future growth,” said Newlands, who first joined Constellation Brands in 2015 and has a career in the alcohol industry spanning 30 years.

“It’s an exciting time for our company. I’m honoured to join the board of directors and look forward to working together in continuing to shape the company’s future strategies and priorities.”

Rob Sands added: “Bill has a deep understanding of consumer trends and an ability to leverage those insights to enhance our innovation pipeline and drive incremental growth.

“His extensive beverage alcohol industry experience and appreciation for the values and principles that have made Constellation successful for more than 70 years make him ideally suited to serve as our next CEO and a great addition to our board of directors.”

Newlands played a key role in Constellation’s move into the cannabis market with its acquisition of a minority stake in Canadian cannabis producer Canopy Growth Corporation for US$191 million in 2017.

In August last year, the group announced an additional investment of US$4 billion in Canopy – the most significant investment in the global cannabis industry to date.