Former New Belgium VP Joins Small-Batch Tequila Maker
Joe Menetre, the former vice president of sales at New Belgium Brewing Company, has joined Fort Collins-based Suerte Tequila, the company announced last week.
The small-batch distillery, founded by Laurence Spiewak and Lance Sokol in 2012, sells four types of tequila in 24 states.
“Demand for Suerte has been growing rapidly over the last couple of years and we want to capitalize on the strong sales to build our brand’s recognition regionally and nationally,” Spiewak said, via the release.
Menetre, who spent 18 years with New Belgium and most recently advised breweries and distribution companies through his own consulting firm, Menetre Inc., will be tasked with leading Suerte’s “internal sales division” and “driving strategy across all channels,” a press release noted.
“Joe has a phenomenal reputation and long history in the beverage industry, helping to build New Belgium into a national leader in the craft beer market. We trust his experience and are looking forward to his work as our VP of Sales.”
Menetre joined Suerte in May, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Constellation Brands Names Chief Technology Officer
Constellation Brands last week appointed former DHL executive Ricardo Bartra as its chief technology officer.
Bartra previously spent six years as the senior vice president and chief information officer at DHL Global Forwarding, a unit of Deutsche Post DHL, the world’s largest logistics group.
According to a press release, Bartra led a “multinational information technology team focused on implementing DHL’s digital transformation.”
“I believe that leaders in technology have to realize the global context of our business and the fact that the digital disruption is here,” Bartra said, via the release. “I am looking forward to working with the talented and dedicated IT team and people at Constellation Brands to ensure that technology continues to play a part in driving speed of innovation, business insights and action.”
Sun King President to Step Down
Sun King Brewing president Bob Whitt, who joined the company as a minority partner in mid-2016, will step back from his day-to-day responsibilities at the end of July, according to the Inside Indiana Business website.
Sun King Brewing co-founders Dave Colt and Clay Robinson will continue to lead the company, and Whitt will maintain “more limited ownership responsibilities” throughout the end of the year, according to the report.
Whitt, who served as the executive director of Indianapolis’ White River State Park before entering the craft brewing sector, purchased a minority stake in the brewery when former president and co-founder Omar Robinson retired in 2016.
“I leave Sun King as I came — proud of the people and products that make it such a treasure to Indy,” Whitt told the outlet.