The Coca-Cola Company has appointed Lidia Ponce de Leon as country manager of Coca-Cola Ireland, succeeding Amruta Vaidya, who moves to Romania. It places a franchise operations specialist in charge of local growth and product marketing, working with its bottling partner across the island of Ireland.

The Coca-Cola Company works in Ireland with bottler Coca-Cola HBC. Together the Coca-Cola system employs around 1,500 people across the island of Ireland.

Ponce de Leon will lead growth locally and product marketing for the company’s brand portfolio in Ireland. She will work closely with Coca-Cola HBC to drive sustainable growth, strengthen the portfolio and deliver innovative experiences for consumers and customers.

Her background spans brand development, business growth and franchise operations across consumer brands, retail and hospitality. She was previously director of franchise operations in Ireland, then returned to Spain, where she most recently served as senior director of franchise operations.

Ponce de Leon said: “Ireland is an important market for Coca-Cola, with a proud history, fantastic brands and strong relationships with our customers, partners and communities across the country. Ireland also plays a significant role within the company’s global operations.”

She said: “I’m looking forward to working with the talented team in Ireland and our bottling partner Coca-Cola HBC to build on that strong foundation. Together, we will continue to put consumers at the heart of what we do, grow our portfolio and bring innovative and memorable brand experiences to people across Ireland.”

The company said it continues to invest with Coca-Cola HBC in packaging collection, recycling and product reformulation. Drinks Industry Ireland reported that Re-turn, which administers Ireland’s Deposit Return Scheme, saw more than two million cans and bottles returned at summer events, including more than 1.08 million at Electric Picnic.

For the sector, appointing a country manager with franchise operations experience in the same market signals that beverage brands value operating familiarity with bottler partnerships when leading local growth.

Source: Drinks Industry Ireland