Asahi Group Holdings has announced the appointment of Nigel Parsons as Chief Executive Officer of Asahi Europe & International Ltd. (AEI).

He is expected to assume the role in the second half of the year, subject to the relevant visa approvals.

His appointment follows the departure of current AEI CEO Dragoș Constantinescu at the end of June. Constantinescu announced in April that he had decided to leave the company to pursue career opportunities outside of the organisation. Soon after, the British American Tobacco named him as its new Chief Financial Officer.

Andrew Bailey, AEI Chief Financial Officer, will serve as Acting CEO to ensure a smooth leadership transition until Parsons assumes the role.

Parsons brings extensive people, commercial and multi-category leadership experience from both within the Asahi Group and leading global FMCG organisations. He joined Asahi Beverages in 2021 and served as CEO of the Asahi
Lifestyle Beverages division, and most recently as Chief Commercial Officer, Oceania at Asahi Beverages, where he led the full commercial remit across Australia and New Zealand.

Asahi Group Holdings President and Group CEO Atsushi Katsuki said: “Nigel Parsons brings extensive leadership experience and a proven track record of driving sustainable growth and leading organisational transformation.

“We are confident that, under his leadership, AEI will advance its strategic priorities in full alignment with the Group’s Medium- to Long-Term Management Policy and strengthen value creation across our business portfolio.”