The Boston Beer Company has named Allison Stransky, the U.S. chief marketing officer of Samsung Electronics America, as its new chief marketing officer, with the appointment taking effect on 12 October, according to reports.
Stransky will lead marketing across the brewer’s portfolio of brands, which includes Samuel Adams, Dogfish Head, Twisted Tea, Sun Cruiser, Truly Hard Seltzer and Angry Orchard. She will report to company founder, president and chief executive Jim Koch and chief operating officer Phil Hodges.
She succeeds Lesya Lysyj, who stepped down in March after nearly seven years as CMO — a tenure well above the industry average. Hodges has served as interim chief marketer while the company ran its search for a permanent appointment.
Stransky brings more than 20 years of experience spanning technology and consumer goods. As CMO of Samsung Electronics America she oversaw marketing, communications, big data and AI-led transformation across mobile devices, home appliances and connected services. Earlier roles include stints at Google, L’Oréal, Unilever and Johnson & Johnson.
According to reports, Boston Beer cited what it called her unique blend of consumer brand-building expertise and data-driven digital marketing capabilities as a way to modernise the brewer’s approach to marketing.
The move comes at a challenging moment for parts of the portfolio. The company has said demand for Truly has fallen short of expectations, while Twisted Tea faces growing competition from spirits-based hard teas and canned cocktails. Boston Beer has said it will keep investing in advertising while cutting around $20 million in underperforming media spending, mainly for Truly.
For marketers in the drinks trade, the appointment signals a continued drift of consumer-goods marketing towards data-led, technology-flavoured leadership. With brand management, digital and social media, experiential marketing and connected commerce all in her remit, according to reports, Stransky’s brief looks set to tilt the brewer’s marketing mix further towards measurable, digitally-led growth.
