Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
Tolaram has taken charge of the operations of the Guinness Nigeria PLC having completed the acquisition of the 58.02 percent controlling shares of Guinness Nigeria PLC.
In a corporate action announcement okayed by the Nigeria Exchange Limited for publication on the NGX Issuers portal, Guinness Nigeria PLC announced the following resignations from its Board of Directors including Mr Adebayo Alli – Managing Director/CEO, Ms Joan Hodgins – Non-Executive Director, Mrs Grainne Wafer- Non-Executive Director, Mr Leo Breen, while confirming the appointment of a new board namely: while Mr Girish Sharma will step in as the new Managing Director/CEO, Mr Haresh Aswani – Vice Chair & Non-Executive Director, Mr Deepak Singhal – Non-Executive Director, and Mr John Musunga – Non-Executive Director.
It may be recalled that in June 2024, Diageo and Tolaram announced a proposed transaction that would have Diageo transfer ownership of its 58.02% shareholding in Guinness Nigeria to Tolaram, making Tolaram the new majority shareholder, while establishing long-term license and royalty agreements for the company’s continued production, marketing and sale of the Guinness brand and all its locally manufactured Diageo ready-to-drink and mainstream spirits brands in Nigeria.
Commenting on the completion of the share transfer transaction and the newly constituted Board, Board Chair, Dr. Omobola Johnson said “The Board, Management and employees of Guinness Nigeria are excited about what the future holds in this new era as we embrace the tremendous opportunities presented by the vast experience and decades of remarkable presence of Tolaram in Nigeria building great brands.
Tolaram also announced a new management board for the company.
Dr. Johnson also welcomed all the newly appointed Directors to the Board as the Board looks forward to their contributions in taking the business of the Company to new heights of growth, sustainability, and value creation for all stakeholders.
In the new appointments announced, Mr. Girish Sharma, a seasoned business leader with a track record of transformative leadership will assume the role of Managing Director/CEO. Mr. Sharma holds an MBA in Marketing from the University of Kent and executive leadership qualifications from Harvard, Stanford and Cambridge Universities, focusing on leadership, sustainability, and business management.
Until his appointment, Mr. Sharma was CEO of Tolaram’s joint venture with Colgate-Palmolive, delivering a remarkable 70 percent compound annual growth rate in top-line revenue year-on-year in the 5-year period since the inception of the Colgate-Palmolive Tolaram joint venture.
Mr Sharma was also Chief Operating Officer of the Tolaram’s manufacturing company, Dufil, in which capacity he oversaw the growth of Tolaram’s flagship instant noodle brand, Indomie, to a household name and market leader in Nigeria and Ghana.