Mahesh Madhavan to head Bacardi India

BANGALORE: Spirits giant Bacardi is rejigging its top management in India for the first since its foray almost a decade ago. Mahesh Madhavan, currently managing director of Bacardi Thailand, will return to India as president & chief executive of Bacardi Martini India (BMIL).

The current head Jayant Kapur will move up as chairman of the board of directors of BMIL, which is a 76:24 JV between Bermuda-based Bacradi and Mysore headquartered Gemini Distilleries. Bacardi is the world’s largest privately-held spirits behemoth, with the eponymous rums as its flagship. Mr Madhavan comes in at a time when Bacardi has identified India as a key growth market along with China and Russia.

He was part of the Bacardi start-up team in India looking after the marketing function, and later moved into the global system. As MD of Bacardi Thailand, he also spearheaded operations in Philippines.

Announcing these changes, Luis Bach region director and a member of the Bacardi Executive Committee, said: “lndia has been identified as a priority growth investment market for Bacardi. We have aggressive plans to grow our global portfolio of brands, and especially Bacardi Superior Rum, in India. Making these key senior leadership appointments will allow us to accelerate development of our business and organisation throughout India."