Allied Domecq hit as new head of marketing quits

Allied Domecq Spirits & Wine (UK) is preparing for its third major shake-up in a year following the resignation of marketing director Hayley Beale.

Beale, who took the role only three months ago, is leaving in June to move to San Francisco for personal reasons.

She is responsible for Allied Domecq’s complex portfolio of spirit, liqueur and fortified wine brands, including Tia Maria, Harvey’s sherries, Beefeater gin, and Teacher’s and William Grant’s Scotch whiskies. She is also head of the company’s new brand development group, set up six months ago.

An Allied Domecq spokesman says Beale’s replacement has not yet been appointed and Beale herself was unavailable for comment.

Allied Domecq appointed former Britvic marketing manager Beale as overall marketing director, after merging her responsibilities as marketing director for liqueurs and fortified wines with those covering spirits (MW November 22 1996).

The spirits marketing post was formerly held by Tom Ray but he was moved to work for Allied Domecq Europe’s Project Gallileo, designed to build sales and marketing expertise across its European marketing and sales companies.

Beale and Ray worked as marketing chiefs for Allied Domecq’s UK brand distributors, J R Phillips and URM respectively, before the companies were disbanded last summer to be replaced by the single sales and marketing operation – Allied Domecq Spirits & Wine (UK) (MW June 14 1996).

Media story, page 14