Emperador Inc., the liquor firm of tycoon Andrew Tan, has appointed Glenn Manlapaz as the company’s new president and chief executive officer, replacing Winston Co who resigned after leading the company for 12 years.
Emperador said in a disclosure to the stock exchange that its board of directors approved the resignation of Co as president and Katherine Tan as director and member of the executive committee. It also approved the appointment Manlapaz as the new president and CEO.
Manlapaz, 54, previously served as CEO of Emperador Inc. and was president for Asia and the Pacific of the company’s international operations.
He joined Emperador Distillers Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary, in 2014 as regional managing director for Asia. Before that, he held senior roles at global liquor giant Diageo, including managing director for the Philippines and general manager for Indonesia.
He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce and a Master’s in Business Administration from De La Salle University. As he assumes leadership, Manlapaz is expected to steer Emperador’s global expansion strategy, which includes strengthening its presence in Europe, North America and Asia through brand investments and distribution partnerships.
Emperador has been actively growing its international footprint, with a focus on its whisky and brandy portfolio, including Whyte & Mackay and Fundador. The company aims to boost exports and scale up premium product offerings to capture a larger share of the global liquor market.