Kasper Andersen takes leadership role at Edrington Global Travel Retail

Premium spirits company Edrington Group has named Kasper Andersen as Managing Director of its travel retail division. He will succeed Jeremy Speirs, who transitions to a new role as Regional Managing Director at Edrington Americas from June.

Over the course of a career with Edrington spanning nearly 20 years, Andersen has held leadership positions in North and Central Europe, most recently heading the Nordics business and overseeing the business in Germany.

In 2015, he established Edrington European Travel Retail and had overall responsibility for the EMEA region during a three-year tenure as Commercial Director, EMEA Travel Retail. In his new role he will be based in Glasgow, at Edrington’s Queen Street headquarters.

Under the leadership of Jeremy Speirs, Edrington GTR strengthened The Macallan’s position as the leading single malt by value in the channel through a focus on premiumisation, said the group in a statement.

It said that over the last 18 months, this position has been solidified through the launch of the new travel-exclusive range, The Macallan Colour Collection, the celebration of the brand marking 200 years in 2024, as well as major investments in Highland Park and Brugal.

In his new role, based in New York, Speirs will lead and oversee the day to day running of Edrington’s largest single market, the USA, as well as the wider Americas business, switching channels to focus on the domestic side of the business.

The Macallan Managing Director Igor Boyadjian said: “Travel retail remains a key strategic channel for our business, continuing to play a central role as a platform for brand-building and recruitment.

“Jeremy’s tenure at the helm of the travel retail business has been hugely impactful, with notable successes including the global rollout of The Macallan Colour Collection as well as the continued sharpening of our experiential retail strategy. Kasper is a natural successor to Jeremy; his experience in this channel along with his deep understanding of Edrington’s brands, will ensure a seamless transition and continuity in the execution of our premiumisation strategy.”

Kasper Andersen said: “I leave the Nordics with a strong sense of achievement and pride in what we achieved together as a team, and I now look forward to returning to travel retail. I really enjoy working in this strategic channel, which offers a unique opportunity to showcase our brands and offer the consumer an experience out of the ordinary. I also look forward to meeting former retail partners as well as building relationships with new ones to power future collaborations in this dynamic channel.”

Jeremy Speirs added: “I’m immensely proud of what our business and talented and ambitious team has achieved over the last five years, initially during a period of recalibration and recovery, and more recently delivering some milestone launches and innovations, but always underpinned by our unswerving belief in travel retail and the long-term prospects it offers for premiumisation. I wish Kasper all the best in his new role and am looking forward to seeing our business in travel retail go from strength to strength.”