Diageo appoints Nik Jhangiani as next CFO

The finance chief of Coca-Cola’s biggest bottler is moving to Diageo as the Guinness producer looks to boost struggling sales.

Nik Jhangiani intends to join Diageo as CFO this autumn after an eight-year stint at Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP), which made more than €18 billion in turnover last year.

She will replace Lavanya Chandrashekar, who has been the company’s chief financial officer since July 2021 but wants to return to the United States.

Jhangiani has worked in senior positions within the Coca-Cola system for two decades, including at another of its major anchor bottlers, Hellenic Bottling Company.

He also spent time at Indian conglomerate Bharti Enterprises and began his career working at accounting group Deloitte & Touche and pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb.

His appointment at Diageo comes as the FTSE 100 company struggles to achieve the impressive growth achieved under former bosses Paul Walsh and Sir Ivan Menezes, who died shortly after stepping down as chief executive last year.

In the final six months of 2023, Diageo’s revenue fell 1.4 percent to £8.6 billion due to unfavorable exchange rates and falling demand in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Trade across the territory was affected by lower sales of spirits, such as Johnnie Walker, Buchanan’s and the Don Julio tequila brand.

Revenue was also affected by weak performance in North America, its largest market, due to falling rum and vodka volumes.

Despite strong results in Europe, partly caused by excellent sales of Guinness in the British Isles, Diageo’s half-year profits fell 11 percent to £2.6 billion.

Debra Crew, the company’s chief executive, admitted the period had been “challenging” but said organic net sales and operating profits were expected to improve in the second half of the financial year.

Crew became chief executive last June, succeeding Menezes, who helped boost Diageo’s market value from £42bn to around £75bn during his decade in charge.

The former US Air Force officer spent just nine months as Diageo’s chief operating officer until she was promoted to the top job.

He previously worked for Kraft Foods, Nestlé, Mars and PepsiCo and led the Reynolds American tobacco group until its acquisition by British American Tobacco.

Crew told investors that Jhangiani has “a proven global track record of generating growth across multiple industries and consumer businesses.” “Nik’s experience and international mindset will make him a strong addition to our leadership team.”

Jhagiani said he had “long admired” Diageo and called it “one of the most respected and trusted consumer companies in the world.”

“I look forward to working with my new colleagues to deliver value for Diageo shareholders and supporting the company’s strong track record in creating and sustaining exceptional brands.”

diageo shares They rose 1.1 per cent to 2,758.5p on Friday morning, but have fallen by about a quarter in the past 12 months.