New Belgium gets new CEO
New Belgium Brewing didn’t have to seek far and wide to find its new chief executive officer, tapping current chief operating officer and president Christine Perich to succeed founding CEO Kim Jordan, who is moving over to chair the brewery’s board of directors.
The move is significant for Colorado’s largest craft brewer. New Belgium currently is the nation’s fourth-largest craft brewery and eighth-largest overall brewery.
Jordan founded the company with her thenhusband Jeff Lebesch in 1991, when they started brewing beer in their home. Lebesch left in 2001.
Jordan said in a news release that the transition, which will occur on Oct. 9, will be a smooth one.
“With Christine’s years of experience as CFO, COO and president, she is abundantly qualified to step into this position, allowing me to focus on longterm strategy and vision,” Jordan said. “I have complete faith in her ability. We are excited for this next chapter in our collective history.”
Perich, who was hired in 2000 as the company’s controller, became COO in 2008 and was instrumental in transitioning the brewery into a 100 percent employee stock ownership plan company in 2013, according to the release.
She also oversaw the construction of a new brewery in Asheville, N.C.
In an interview with The Denver Post, Perich said she plans to continue the efforts that Jordan started, growing the brewery and getting the Asheville operation up and running.
“For New Belgium, we want to keep it interesting,” Perich said. “Growth is important but so is providing consumers with more interesting beverages to drink.”