The Coca-Cola Company has promoted chief operating officer Henrique Braun to the position of CEO.
Braun will assume the new role on 31 March, succeeding James Quincey, who, after almost nine years as CEO, will become the drinks giant's executive chairman.
In a statement yesterday (10 December), the Diet Coke owner said Braun’s priorities as CEO include “seeking the best growth opportunities worldwide”.
He will also focus on “driving the company to get even closer to consumer needs; and leveraging technology as an enabler of business performance and growth”, the statement added.
Both Quincey and Braun joined Coca-Cola in 1996 and have risen through a series of leadership roles across various markets.
Braun, who became COO in January, brings experience in supply chain, bottling and new business development.
He has worked as senior vice president and president for international development, managing seven of Coca-Cola’s nine operating units.
Braun has been president of the Sprite owner's businesses in Latin America, Brazil, Greater China and South Korea.
Quincey became Coca-Cola CEO in 2017 and then also chairman of the board in 2019.
Before taking the top job, he was appointed COO in 2015 after two decades at the company that included stints as president of Coca-Cola’s Europe Group and president of its operations in Mexico.
Coca-Cola said it has added more than 10 additional “billion-dollar” brands to its portfolio during Quincey’s tenure.
The company also credited him with playing a “key” role in the formation of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, one of the world’s largest Coca-Cola bottlers.
Under Quincey’s leadership, Coca-Cola's annual net revenues grew from $31.9bn in 2018 – his first full year as CEO – to $47.1bn in 2024. Net income attributable to shareowners rose from $6.43bn to $10.63bn over the same period.
In August, Sky News reported Coca-Cola had appointed Lazard, the investment bank, to review its options for Costa Coffee, which operates in around 50 countries worldwide. Coca-Cola snapped up the UK coffee chain in 2018 for £3.9bn ($5.2bn).
Speaking to analysts in July after Coca-Cola reported its second-quarter financial results, Quincey was asked to reflect on the coffee market and the company’s strategy in the sector.
He said: “Coffee is a large, fragmented, growing category in the total beverage industry, so, it’s clearly attractive if we and the bottling system can find ways to participate more deeply in that category.
“Now, having said that, our investment in Costa is not where we wanted it to be from an investment hypothesis point of view.
“The business is still a good business, but it’s not quite delivered on the different verticals of growth that we were hoping to accelerate much quicker, the ready-to-drink coffee, the Express machines at home.”
