With just over two months until launch, Suntory Oceania has announced its licensed sales leadership team to lead its alcohol portfolio.
Stevee Evans, Joe Kurukaanga, Josh van Wyk, and Michelle Kerr-Viljoen will join Jared Chamberlain’s licensed sales division, bringing more than 100 years of collective experience from leading beverage companies.
The appointments finalise Suntory Oceania’s multi-beverage sales leadership, with Chamberlain’s licensed team working alongside Deb Cooper, Non-Licensed Sales Director NZ, and the non-alcohol division, to deliver a unified customer approach across more than 40 leading brands.
“We’re incredibly fortunate to have attracted this calibre of talent to help us build something genuinely new in the New Zealand market,” says Jared Chamberlain, Licensed Sales Director NZ.
“These are experienced leaders who understand what it takes to drive category growth and deliver exceptional customer service.”
The announcement marks a critical milestone as Suntory Oceania enters the final countdown to its January 2026 go-live date, when the business will manage end-to-end manufacturing, sales, and distribution across premium spirits, RTDs, soft drinks, energy drinks, and water for the first time in New Zealand.
To support this transformation, Suntory Oceania has grown its New Zealand sales team to more than 150 people, including more than 30 new team members dedicated to licensed sales.
For retailers and hospitality operators, this means a single Suntory team with coordinated category strategies and promotional planning across all categories.
The team is working closely with customers to complete onboarding ahead of January, ensuring no disruption to supply of leading brands including Jim Beam and Canadian Club.
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