Drinks group C&C Group said that its CEO John Dunsmore will step down at the end of the calendar year. He will be succeeded by Stephen Glancey, the company's chief operating officer and finance director.
Kenny Neison will become C&C's new finance director. A statement from the company said that further senior management appointments will be announced in due course.
The drinks group also today reported pre-tax profits, before exceptional items, of €64.8m for the six months to the end of August. This compares with €58.7m the same time last year.
Half-yearly revenues slipped marginally from €440m to €399.3m while operating profits for the period rose by 7.8% to €67.4m. The company said it was proposing a dividend increase of 11% to 16.5 cent.
''C&C is pleased to report a robust financial performance despite a tough second quarter for the trade in both the UK and Ireland where poor weather added to the challenge presented by lower consumer confidence levels,'' commented CEO John Dunsmore.
He added that the company remains confident of meeting the previously stated guidance of operating profits in the range of €108-115m for the full year.
In Ireland, C&C said that the contribution from its beer portfolio increased by €1.2m in the first half, which helped the Irish business to broadly meet its targets. Volumes of its Bulmers cider dropped by 3.5%.
''The Republic of Ireland remains a challenging market with few signs of a pick-up in the near term,'' the company stated. It added that the growth of the off-licence trade and promotional pricing activity continues to exert downward pressure on retail pricing and revenues.
But it added that the distribution build for its Tennents and Becks Vier beer brands is gaining momentum and growth in beer volumes and revenues were well ahead of the general market trend in Ireland.
In the UK, C&C said the performance of its Magners cider brand was robust despite increased competition and challenging trading conditions. In volume terns, the brand grew by 2.9% in the six month period.
