Brown-Forman Announces Series of Strategic Initiatives for Growth
Company To Restructure Globally, Louisville Cooperage To Close

Chris Graven, Chief Strategy Officer (Photo: Business Wire)
“In 2025, Brown-Forman celebrates 155 years of delivering Nothing Better in the Market. We have achieved this impressive milestone in part because of our relentless focus on evolving our strategy, our portfolio, and our organization to grow and thrive,” said Lawson Whiting, President & Chief Executive Officer. “Today’s announcement will ensure we have the structure and teams in place to continue on this path, while also making investments that we believe will facilitate growth for generations to come.”
New Executive Leadership Team Appointments
Brown-Forman has restructured its executive leadership team to accelerate growth across its brands, business, and workforce. This includes consolidating and streamlining its commercial structure to leverage greater synergies and effectiveness in its markets.
Among the new appointments, effective as of today:
-
Jeremy Shepherd has been named Chief Marketing Officer. Shepherd previously led the company’s
USA &Canada commercial division. -
Michael Masick has been named President,
Americas . Masick will continue commercial leadership forMexico , South andCentral America , and theCaribbean . In his expanded role, he will addUSA &Canada to his remit. -
Yiannis Pafilis has been named President,
Europe ,Africa ,Asia Pacific . Pafilis currently leads teams acrossEurope . In this expanded role, he will addAfrica , theAsia Pacific region, and global travel retail. - Chris Graven has joined the executive leadership team as Chief Strategy Officer. Graven has held roles in Brown-Forman’s HR, finance, marketing, and commercial organizations in her 20 years with the company.
Workforce Reduction
To enhance operational efficiency and agility, Brown-Forman has made the difficult decision to reduce its global workforce by approximately
This organizational evolution will simplify and streamline Brown-Forman’s structure, allowing it to become a more agile and efficient organization and reinvest in the capabilities, technologies, brands, and people that will drive future growth.
Brown-Forman Cooperage Closure
Brown-Forman will close its
Moving forward, Brown-Forman will source barrels from an external supplier to ensure a steady supply of the same high-quality barrels at a competitive price.
Collectively, these actions are projected to deliver approximately
"I want to express my sincere gratitude to our employees, particularly those impacted by these changes, for their dedication and contributions to Brown-Forman," said Whiting. "We are committed to supporting them through this transition and are confident that these strategic initiatives will ensure the company endures for generations to come."
Bios and photos for executive leadership team members are available on Brown-Forman.com.
About Brown-Forman:
Brown-Forman Corporation has been building exceptional spirits brands for more than 150 years, responsibly upholding our founding promise of “Nothing Better in the Market.” Our portfolio of premium brands includes the Jack Daniel’s Family of Brands, Woodford Reserve, Herradura, el Jimador, Korbel, New Mix, Old Forester, The Glendronach, Glenglassaugh, Benriach, Diplomático Rum, Chambord, Gin Mare, Fords Gin, Slane, and Coopers’ Craft. With a team of approximately 5,400 employees worldwide, we proudly share our passion for premium beverages in more than 170 countries. Discover more about us at brown-forman.com and stay connected through LinkedIn, Instagram, and X.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements that are “forward-looking statements” as defined under
For further information on factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our historical experience or from our current expectations or projections, please refer to our public filings, including the “Risk Factors” section of our Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250114888794/en/
Elizabeth
Director
External Communications
502-774-7737
elizabeth_conway@b-f.com
Sue Perram
Vice President
Investor Relations
502-774-6862
sue_perram@b-f.com
Source: Brown-Forman Corporation