New head takes over at Red Stripe
Published:Friday | August 23, 2019 | 12:00 AM
Desnoes & Geddes Limited, which trades as Red Stripe Jamaica, has a new managing director, Luis Prata, who was appointed Monday, August 19 as replacement for Ricardo Nuncio.
Prata comes to Jamaica from Portugal where he served as director of trade and wholesale for Heineken. He has worked with Heineken in Portugal since 2010 and has been credited for growing trade channels in that market in the past three years.
Nuncio, who was tapped by Heineken to run the Jamaican brewery in November 2015 after its acquisition, will return to Mexico in the role of director of sales northeast.
His achievements in the Jamaican market were itemised as leading the “integration of the business into the new structure, accelerating top-line growth through innovation, strengthening of the Red Stripe brand and developing a stronger route to market. He implemented several strategic transformations, including the installation of a new packaging line and the upgrade of the cassava starch factory”. Cassava is used as an input for Red Stripe beer.
During his tenure, Nuncio oversaw the return to Kingston of the manufacturing of beer that was destined for export to North America. The business had been previously outsourced to a foreign brewery. However, Red Stripe, which is sold in 25 markets, otherwise continues to be brewed under licence in the United Kingdom. One of his last activities was participation in the official opening on Tuesday, a day after Prata took over, of Celebration Brands’ US$4-million Logic One warehouse. Celebration is a collaboration of Red Stripe and beverage maker Pepsi-Cola Bottling Jamaica.