US distilling company MGP Ingredients has hired four drinks industry veterans, in a bid to “accelerate growth”.
Announcing the appointments of Tom Neiheisel, Sol Clahane, Marilyn Chen and David Sanders yesterday (28 July), the company said the move aims to “strengthen its commercial and marketing excellence” in its Distilling Solutions and Branded Spirits segments as well as “the company as a whole”.
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Neiheisel has been appointed the group’s vice president of sales in its Distilling Solutions segment, which produces spirits for other businesses.
It is a part of MGP that has felt a pressure on sales in recent quarters.
In MGP’s second quarter results, released today (29 July), the group saw sales in Distilling Solutions tumble 42% year on year to $29.2m.
In its first quarter results, issued at the end of April, the same segment recorded a 40% drop in sales on the previous year, at $28m.
Neiheisel has more than 20 years of “commercial and operational excellence”, MGP said. His background includes senior roles at Pernod Ricard’s US business, as well as at Diageo and Brown-Forman, in areas such as bulk sales, contract distillation and operations.
At MGP, Neiheisel will head the Distilling Solutions commercial team, holding responsibility for sales strategy, customer engagement and business development.
Sol Clahane has been named the group’s managing director of national accounts. Similarly to Neiheisel, Clahane’s experience in the beverage-alcohol industry, which spans more than 30 years, also includes previous senior roles at Pernod’s US business and Brown-Forman.
She will oversee national chain sales, both on- and off-premise, for MGP’s branded spirits portfolio.
Her remit includes building partnerships in underdeveloped national accounts and channels while pushing growth across the portfolio.
Marilyn Chen has been named brand director for MGP’s Penelope Bourbon brand, joining from Suntory Global Spirits, where she was US brand director.
The whiskey and vodka distiller said she will shape Penelope Bourbon’s “strategic vision”, oversee marketing and innovation, expand the brand ambassador programme and develop new marketing capabilities.
David Sanders joins the group as vice president of financial planning & analysis. He brings more than 18 years of finance and strategic planning experience from Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits, PepsiCo and Bimbo Bakeries, MGP said.
He will head finance and revenue growth management across the company.
MGP’s CEO Julie Francis said the new hires “further strengthen our leadership as we execute our long-term growth strategy”.
She added: “Their expertise, combined with the talented team already in place, will help us deepen customer relationships, accelerate growth across our premium portfolio and continue creating long-term value.”
In its second quarter ended 30 June, MGP Ingredients recorded a 15% decline in group sales at $124.4m, while gross profit slumped 20% to $46.5m.
Adjusted EBITDA was also down in the period 23% at $27.6m.
Net income was also down in the quarter, reaching $12m versus $14.4m in 2025.
Operating income in the three months dropped to $17.7m, with growth in the company’s Branded Spirits segment being hit “by expected reductions in Distilling Solutions and Ingredient Solutions”.
MGP said the growth was also “impacted by an increase in provision for credit loss related to a customer bankruptcy”.
Within the Distilling Solutions segment, the group said one of the main developments in the period was “lower demand for aged and new distillate whiskey” that “continued to pressure results and drove a 59% decline in brown goods sales”.
The group reaffirmed its forecast for 2026, which estimates total sales to sit between $480m and $500m, a drop on the $536.4m it generated in 2025.
The company also expects 2026 adjusted EBITDA to sit in the range of $90m to $98m, compared with $116m in 2025.
In February, MGP forecasted lower sales and earnings for 2026 than it recorded last year.
At the time, it said that forecast was due to an “anticipated” sales drop in the company’s Distilling Solutions division.
