nnounced the appointment of Maggie Lapcewich to its national leadership team in the position of Senior Vice President of Commercial Strategy & Business Development effective July 1, 2014. In this role, Lapcewich will be charged with overseeing commercial strategy and integration for Wirtz Beverage Group. Most recently, Lapcewich was President of Diageo Canada.“Maggie is one of the most experienced and knowledgeable professionals in the industry and she will be a huge asset to our team,” said Danny Wirtz, Executive Vice President of Wirtz Beverage. “Her talents will help scale our commercial strategy and market execution efforts across our operations.”
In the newly-created role of SVP Commercial Strategy & Business Development, Lapcewich will leverage company investments in technology, trade development and sales to drive commercial effectiveness and enhance execution in the market. She will also play a role in business development and work closely with national sales and marketing leadership, including Julian Burzynski, EVP Sales & Marketing and Kevin Roberts, SVP National Sales & Marketing. Kevin assumes this role July 1, having served most recently as SVP, Wirtz Beverage Nevada. Both Maggie and Kevin will be based in Chicago where the company is headquartered and will report directly to Danny Wirtz.
“Having seen the industry from all sides, I can say in earnest, that Wirtz Beverage is really leading the charge on evolving their go-to-market strategy,” said Lapcewich. “As a company, they are always thinking about what’s next and it’s that never-satisfied, ambitious approach that will help us grow. I look forward to rolling up my sleeves and jumping in.”
Lapcewich’s career in the beverage industry spans nearly 25 years and includes time with E&J Gallo Winery and most significantly, Diageo where she held a variety of roles as a member of its North America Executive Team such as President of National Accounts and President of Global Tequila, in addition to her most recent role. Proficient in brand and trade marketing, distributor sales as well as customer and business management, she has led comprehensive market strategies to support brands locally and globally.
“The expansion of our commercial and sales leadership team will directly enhance our execution capabilities,” continued Wirtz. “We are thrilled to welcome Maggie and Kevin to our national team.”
Wirtz Beverage Group is one of the nation’s leading alcohol beverage distributors with interests in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, Wisconsin and throughout Canada. With nearly $2 billion in annual sales and more than 2,500 employees, the company calls the industry’s elite beer, wine and spirit suppliers its partners.
