NEW YORK: The chief executive of the world’s biggest spirits company Diageo, Sir Ivan Menezes, died on Wednesday at 63.
The Guinness and Johnnie Walker maker said that Menezes passed away following a brief illness, with his relatives and family at his side.
The British-American national Sir Ivan Menezes was born in the Indian city of Pune. He was set to get retirement at the end of the month.
Earlier this week, the company said that Menezes was in the hospital for health conditions, including an ulcer in stomach.
Diageo chairman Javier Ferrán said that this is a very sad day. Ivan was certainly one of the finest leaders of his time.
He added that Ivan was there at the founding of Diageo and, over twenty-five years, shaped Diageo into one of the most trusted, best performing, and respected consumer firms.
Prior to Diageo, he worked at marketing and strategy posts at big companies, including food and beverage firm Nestlé.
Menezes joined Diageo in 1997 when the company was formed by merging London-based conglomerate Grand Metropolitan and brewery giant Guinness.
In his career, he held several senior positions at the company and was became chief executive in July 2013.
Big business leaders’ tributes to Diageo Boss
Big business leaders have been sharing their tributes to Menezes.
Laxman Narasimhan, Starbucks chief executive, said in a LinkedIn post that he had interned at a firm in London where Menezes was a big leader.
He said that over the years, they met in the US, India, and London – as two CEOs of Indian origin, leading firms through a very tough Covid period.
Narasimhan added that he was bold, kind, classy, thoughtful, very downright modest, and a true gentle leader.
French drinks company Pernod Ricard’s chairman and chief executive Alexandre Ricard said that Menezes was one of the first persons to congratulate him on his appointment in 2015.
He said that in a competitive business world, Ivan remained a very genuine and authentic person.
