Ivan Menezes, who as chief executive of the spirits corporation Diageo used his canny understanding of the drinking public to help the company grow into a global colossus, died on June 7 in London.
The cause was complications of emergency surgery for a stomach ulcer, a Diageo spokesman said.
Diageo is omnipresent in the world of alcohol, selling more than 200 brands in more than 180 countries — including Smirnoff vodka, Tanqueray gin, Johnnie Walker Scotch, Captain Morgan rum and Guinness beer — and has the largest global net sales in some spirit categories.
Mr. Menezes (pronounced muh-NAY-zes) was trained in marketing, and closely studied consumer sentiment.
To him, spirits provided what he called “accessible luxury” to customers — a dram of the good life even in an unstable economy.
Persons:
Ivan Menezes, Johnnie Walker Scotch, Morgan, Menezes, ” Mr, Johnnie Walker Blue
Organizations:
Diageo, Yorker, New York Times
Locations:
London