New Belgium Brewing today announced the hiring of Shaun Belongie as its new vice president of marketing.
Belongie, who joined the Colorado-headquartered craft brewery earlier this month, replaces Ruairi Twomey, who departed last July.
”I couldn’t be more excited to join the amazing team at New Belgium,” Belongie said via a press release. “The creativity, passion, and caring that have been foundations of the company from the very start set it apart as something really special. I think there’s such a great opportunity to share that story with a new generation of beer drinkers.”
Belongie — who most recently served as the brand director for Nestle Purina North America, and developed the popular “Puppyhood” and “Dear Kitten” video collaborations with Buzzfeed – will be tasked with overseeing all of New Belgium’s brand marketing activities, according to brewery spokesman Bryan Simpson.
“Shaun has done some really interesting things in the social and digital space,” Simpson told Brewbound. “That is really appealing in our landscape. How we show up in the digital world is pretty critical to any brand.”
Belongie will oversee New Belgium’s content generation, field activations, and communication platforms while working “hand-in-hand” with vice president of sales Michael Corrigan.
“Shaun has a lot of experience in CPG and he gets cultural branding,” Simpson added. “He brings a fresh set of eyes from outside of the category, knows why lifestyle brands are important to people and how to carve out space in that world.”
Belongie is the second notable outsider to join New Belgium’s executive leadership team in recent months. Last August, Steve Fechheimer, the former chief strategy officer at Beam Suntory, took over as CEO.
New Belgium produced about 955,000 barrels in 2017, down slightly from the 958,000 barrels it made in 2016, according to Simpson.
A press release with additional information is below.
New Belgium Appoints New Vice President of Marketing
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – New Belgium Brewing is pleased to announce the appointment of Shaun Belongie to the Executive Leadership Team as Vice President of Marketing effective Jan. 22, 2018.
Shaun has over 13 years of experience in consumer packaged goods, most recently as a Portfolio Director for Nestle Purina, where he led global flagship brands with a highly innovative approach to product development, communications and digital strategy. Shaun brings a range of marketing skills and experience to a fast-growing craft beer scene at a time when New Belgium looks to explore new opportunities after achieving a national distribution footprint in 2017.
“Shaun is a seasoned brand builder with proven expertise envisioning and executing marketing strategies for global lifestyle brands,” said New Belgium CEO Steve Fechhiemer. “We searched far and wide to find the ideal candidate, and Shaun’s demonstrated talent for shepherding breakthrough creative will be tremendously important as we compete in this dynamic landscape.”
In his time at Nestle Purina Shaun developed wildly popular digital content that has generated more than 100M YouTube views and 3M iTunes app downloads.
”I couldn’t be more excited to join the amazing team at New Belgium,” said Shaun Belongie. “The creativity, passion, and caring that have been foundations of the company from the very start set it apart as something really special. I think there’s such a great opportunity to share that story with a new generation of beer drinkers.”
Shaun transitions into his role at New Belgium as the brewery celebrates 26 years of producing world-class beers. As a 100% employee-owned B Corp, New Belgium continues on its mission to demonstrate that business can be a force for good.
About New Belgium Brewing
New Belgium Brewing, makers of Fat Tire Belgian Style Ale and a host of Belgian-inspired beers, is recognized as one of Outside Magazine’s Best Places to Work, one of the Wall Street Journal’s Best Small Businesses and tops Bicycling Magazine’s Best Companies for Cyclists. The 100% employee-owned brewery is a Platinum-level Bicycle Friendly Business as designated by the League of American Bicyclists, one of World Blu’s most democratic U.S. businesses, and a Certified B Corp. In addition to Fat Tire Belgian Style Ale, New Belgium brews fifteen year-round beers; Citradelic Tangerine IPA, Fat Tire Belgian White, Voodoo Ranger IPA, Voodoo Ranger Imperial IPA, Voodoo Ranger 8 Hop Pale Ale, Voodoo Ranger Juicy Haze IPA, Sour Saison, Honey Orange Tripel, Dayblazer Easygoing Ale, Tartastic Lemon Ginger Ale, 1554 Black Ale, Bohemian Pilsner, Abbey Belgian Ale, Trippel and a gluten-reduced beer, Glutiny Pale Ale. To learn more, visit NewBelgium.com and follow the brewery on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.