PepsiCo names new marketing leader to oversee Pepsi, Mtn Dew and Starry

PepsiCo has appointed Mark Kirkham as senior VP of marketing, Pepsi & sparkling brands, where he will oversee marketing of the company’s U.S. carbonated beverage portfolio. Kirkham most recently served as the chief marketing officer for Pepsi’s International Beverages division and has spent nearly nine years in global leadership positions for Pepsi. Before that, he was a U.S.-based marketing director at Mtn Dew, one of the brands he will now oversee. Vishal Kaul, who rejoined the company in July, will succeed Kirkham as the head of International Beverages. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs Kirkham will be responsible for brand strategy and creative execution across the carbonated beverage portfolio. He will report to Greg Lyons, chief marketing officer of PepsiCo Beverages North America, and oversee the marketing heads of Pepsi (Jenny Danzi), Mtn Dew (JP Bittencourt) and Starry (Michael Smith). His appointment comes as PepsiCo works to overcome volume declines in established brands such as Pepsi and Mtn Dew, but while Starry, Pepsi Wild Cherry and Zero Sugar varieties are growing. “Mark is a terrific marketing leader and good friend of mine,” Lyons said in an interview, adding that Kirkham “will bring is a higher level of focus on how we’re going to grow brand Pepsi, and I look forward to his thinking on that.” Plans for Pepsi include a bigger focus on food pairings, which is a top cola occasion, and related attention on the food service channel, where Pepsi recently won the Subway account, Lyons said. Todd Kaplan, whose title was chief marketing officer of brand Pepsi, left Pepsi in June and in August began a new role as CMO, North America, at Kraft Heinz. Danzi, whose title is senior director, is now in charge of Pepsi brand marketing. Smith, who was previously head of brand marketing for Starry, was promoted in June to VP of marketing and is now overseeing Starry, Mug, Bubly and the Future Brands innovation group—Mug and Bubly were previously under Kaplan’s purview. Bittencourt has been Mtn Dew’s VP of marketing since January of 2023. Kirkham was based in Dublin overseeing a portfolio that also included sports drinks, juices and waters. His former positions include VP and general manager of PepsiCo’s global sports, energy and juice portfolio; head of marketing and innovation, Western Europe; and senior marketing director of global Pepsi and global Mtn Dew. Before joining Pepsi in 2010, Kirkham spent nearly five years at P&G where he was a brand manager and senior brand manager for Duracell. Kaul rejoined Pepsi in July following a stint as CEO of Vini Cosmetics. He previously spent more than 20 years with PepsiCo, most in India and Asia.

PepsiCo names new marketing leader to oversee Pepsi, Mtn Dew and Starry

Featured Stories