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Heineken has named Alan Gourdie as its global brand chief, amid

continuing uncertainty over the brand's positioning in the UK

market.

Gourdie, who has already taken up his position, joined from New

Zealand's Dominion Breweries where he was commercial director. He

replaces Frazer Thompson who left the post after five years to join

English Wines as managing director (Marketing, December 6).

Reporting to corporate marketing director Theo de Rond, Gourdie's role

as international brand chief will be to provide marketing activities and

advice to Heineken's individual operating companies throughout the

world, including the UK.

Heineken's future status in the UK is uncertain. For years, the Dutch

head office has been unhappy that the UK is the only market where

Heineken is a standard lager, while it is a premium product in other

countries.

The company is believed to want to reposition it as a premium product

here. This option is fraught with problems, however, not least the fact

that Heineken is distributed by Interbrew, which owns the UK's

best-selling premium lager, Stella Artois.

Gourdie confirmed that Heineken's UK distribution deal with Interbrew is

due to expire early this year, but he did not know whether it would be

renewed. He added there are "no plans at the moment" to reposition

Heineken as a premium lager in the UK.

Elsewhere, one of Gourdie's first tasks has been to end Mybeat, a pilot

scheme intended to link the Heineken brand to music.

Mybeat was a network of 'music dispensing stations' installed in outlets

such as music stores and bars, that allowed consumers to listen to tunes

and buy by mail order.

Gourdie said that the company decided to abandon the project at the end

of its pilot, because consumers failed to buy the CDs.

COMMENT

There are few options open to Heineken if it terminates the distribution

arrangement with Interbrew.

The lager manufacturer lacks the infrastructure to distribute the brand

itself. Other brewers with the capacity to distribute Heineken already

have their own competing standard and premium lagers.

If Heineken is to stick with Interbrew, it will have to abandon its

dream of premium positioning.