Diageo has appointed Sir Dave Lewis as its new CEO and executive director, effective January 1.
Lewis previously held the role of group CEO of Tesco from 2014 to 2020, where he led the transformation of the supermarket chain.
Before his time at Tesco, Lewis spent nearly 30 years at Unilever, holding senior executive roles focused on marketing and business performance.
Currently, Lewis holds the position of chair of Haleon, the consumer healthcare company formed in 2022, and is a non-executive director of PepsiCo.
Lewis will step down from his Haleon role on December 31, ahead of joining Diageo.
“We are delighted to welcome Dave as Diageo’s new CEO,” said Sir John Manzoni, chair of Diageo’s board.
“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 also thanked Nik Jhangiani, who has been serving as interim CEO, for his leadership during the transition.
“Diageo is a world leading business with a portfolio of very strong brands, and I am delighted to be joining the team,” said Lewis.
“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.”
Jhangiani will continue as interim CEO until the end of December before resuming his role as CFO, with Deirdre Mahlan remaining as interim CFO during the transition period.
