Beyond Meat beefs up marketing practice as it names Coke exec as CMO
Plant-based brand Beyond Meat has followed in the footsteps of its competitor, the Meatless Farm Co, and hired a Coca-Cola exec as its chief marketing officer – a role that will head up an expanded internal marcomms team.
Stuart Kronauge joins Beyond Meat as chief marketing officer
Stuart Kronauge was previously president for sparkling brands at Coca-Cola, where she oversaw products such as Diet Coke, Fanta and the flagship drink. Having spent 18 years working for the drinks conglomerate, she will relocate from Atlanta to join Beyond Meat in January 2020.
The CPG veteran is the second Coca-Cola executive to join a plant-based protein company this month. Lone Thomsen, the company’s head of media and connections strategy, departed to join British brand Meatless Farm earlier in October.
Kronauge will head up Beyond Meat’s internal marketing team, which has been bolstered with two more new additions.
Marc Patrick will join as senior vice-president of marketing in November. He was formerly senior director for global brand communications at Nike where he headed up the sports brand’s cross-category ‘Just Do It’ campaigns and content.
Meanwhile, Shira Zackai has been named vice-president and head of communications.
The former senior vice-president and head of media practice at agency M Booth, was hired for her experience implementing PR programs for both startups and Fortune 500 companies.
The appointments come as Beyond Meat readies for its next stage of growth. The company debuted on the New York Stock Market earlier this year with one of the most successful IPOs of 2019; now, its president and chief executive, Ethan Brown, said it is “squarely focused on scaling Beyond Meat into a global protein company”.
“We’ve built our company in dialogue with the consumer, being inspired by, and hopefully in turn, inspiring them,” he said in a statement. “As we continue to expand at an accelerated pace, it is as important as ever that we continue to tell our story, that we remain in dialogue with a widening group of consumers, and that we educate the public on the nutritional and environmental benefits of Going Beyond.”
“The addition of each of these accomplished leaders represents a continued investment in our vision to bring Beyond Meat to consumers across the globe.”