Drinks giant Diageo has appointed Sir Dave Lewis as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director.
Sir Dave joins the Guinness and Johnnie Walker maker from health firm Haleon, where he has served as Chair since 2022, having previously led Tesco as Group CEO from 2014 until 2020. Prior to that, he spent almost 30 years at Unilever, holding a variety of senior management positions, including President Americas and Global President for Personal Care, both on Unilever’s Global Executive team.
“Diageo is a world-leading business with a portfolio of very strong brands, and I am delighted to be joining the team,” he said. “The market faces some headwinds but there are also significant opportunities. I look forward to working with the team to face these challenges and realise some of the opportunities in a way which creates shareholder value.”
Sir Dave is currently a non-executive director of PepsiCo and Chairman of Xlinks, a privately-owned renewable energy business. In recognition of his contribution to business and the food industry, he was knighted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in the 2021 New Year’s Honours List. He is also a Trustee of The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales.
Announcing the decision, Sir John Manzoni, Diageo’s Chair, said: “We are delighted to welcome Dave as Diageo’s new CEO. Having conducted an extensive and thorough global search, the Board unanimously felt that Dave has both the extensive CEO experience, and the proven leadership skills in building and marketing world-leading brands, that is right for Diageo at this time.”
Manzoni added: “We are confident that Dave will work with the team to take Diageo into its next successful chapter in the evolving consumer environment. The Board wishes to recognise and thank Nik Jhangiani for his excellent leadership as Interim CEO and for continuing to drive forward Diageo’s sharpened strategy.”
Sir Dave will officially take the reins at the start of January. Nik Jhangiani will continue as Interim CEO until the end of December 2025, after which he will resume his CFO role. Deirdre Mahlan, having returned to Diageo as Interim CFO, will continue to support the business through the transition.
