Launching a spirits brand today demands a great product, but it also requires a well-planned approach to leadership design. The next stage of growth in the beverage alcohol space often does not hinge on operations, it hinges on people.
Rachel Doueck, Senior Director of Client Strategy at ForceBrands, highlighted this critical shift in a recent report, pointing out that an industry once focused solely on production and partnerships must now pivot to focus on leadership evolution and robust succession planning.
The Alarming Truth About Leadership Stability
ForBrands’ State of the Industry Report research across CPG and beverage alcohol brands reveals a shocking lack of foresight at the executive level:
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Only 13% of companies have succession plans for their top three strategic roles. As a result, 87% of high-growth brands are one resignation away from a major crisis.
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Fewer than 40% of founders believe they are the right person to lead the company into its next stage. The skills needed to launch a brand can differ dramatically from those needed to operate a scaling, multi-million dollar business.
The Hidden Cost of Waiting
The failure to plan for leadership change isn’t just an internal issue, it’s an operational one. The report found that 41% of leaders who delayed transitions said it directly stalled critical milestones like securing capital raises or executing major product launches. An intentional leadership transition is a growth lever, but a delayed transition is an unforced error.
The message is clear: the modern path to scaling a spirit brand relies on transparency and strategy in talent. Businesses must ensure that their current C-suite has the skills needed for their next phase.
*Download the ForceBrands 2025 State of the Industry Report
Scaling Your Spirits Brand: Essential Leadership Transitions & C-Suite Strategy Transcript
Rachel Doueck (0:01)
Hi, I’m Rachel Doueck with ForceBrands, and today we’re here to talk about designing leadership for what’s next, and our state of the industry report.
For a little background on ForceBrands: we are the premier talent partner within consumer. We were founded by a former operator in the spirits industry, motivated by a desire to connect consumer brand leaders, founders, and investors. Today we offer talent acquisition and talent strategy solutions, with a focus across all consumer brands — and we’re proud that our bread and butter, where we started, is in beverage alcohol. We like to consider ourselves a true partner in every sense through our talent acquisition and talent strategy offerings.
A little background on me: I’m a senior director of client strategy. I started my career in hospitality, specifically in mixology — I’ve always had a passion for wines, spirits, and all beverages. Since I started 15 years ago, the industry has changed a lot. My role is on the client partnership side, and I work across many of our partners on organizational design, talent acquisition, and talent strategy.
Rachel Doueck (1:28)
Today I want to share a little about the state of the industry as it relates to talent. Earlier this year, we put together a survey of companies ranging from around $25 million to $500 million in revenue, really spanning all of consumer. Our goal was simply to understand how founders, CEOs, and executive teams were feeling about their businesses as they relate to talent. So we’re not talking today about categories or industry trends — we’re talking about how founders are feeling about how they’re building their businesses.
The industry inflection point is a people strategy. Going back to why we started ForceBrands — it’s really about helping build brands by identifying the right talent to do so. The next stage of growth rarely comes from doing more of the same; it comes from designing the team that can take you there.
In our survey, we found that only 13% of companies have succession plans for their top three strategic roles. We all know how competitive the landscape and market is for talent right now — you can lose a CMO or CEO at any moment to another opportunity. I always advise clients to consider succession planning, especially for the top roles within their business. That 13% is a very low number. And fewer than 40% of founders believe they are the right person to lead the next stage of growth — really interesting stats that came out of this work, and ones that confirmed things we’d been thinking about for some time.
Rachel Doueck (4:22)
Leadership transitions are evolutions, not endings. Founder-to-CEO transitions are becoming very common, and what that means is: as a founder, you build a business, you build your “baby,” and you’re deeply passionate about it. But going back to that stat — founders aren’t always going to be the right person to be CEO forever. There comes a time where your skills may or may not fit that operator mentality. In order to grow a brand and grow the business, it’s something you should constantly be thinking about.
52% of companies reassigned or exited high-tenure leaders last year — a really significant trend we were seeing. A lot of transitions at the leadership level, for many different reasons. Again, ensuring that you have a succession plan doesn’t mean you’re out there actively interviewing and trying to find someone to replace a role right now; it’s about continuing to think about it, checking in with your teams to make sure they’re happy and not considering moving on. That transparency helps too — some leaders will tell you directly, “Hey, I don’t see myself in this role for the next year,” and that’s obviously a good indicator that you should potentially start looking for someone to step in.
41% of leaders who delayed transitions said it directly stalled milestones like capital raises or product launches. Imagine losing your CSO or head of sales in the middle of raising capital or launching into five new markets — that really does stall the business. Intentional transitions are a growth lever, not a loss of identity. As a founder, are you evaluating your leadership team? Do they have the right skills to get you from Point A to Point B? Are they digitally savvy, for example, but perhaps not the commercially driven marketing leader you now need? It’s not wrong to think about what year two or year three looks like. Identifying those intentional transitions early on is very important.
Rachel Doueck (6:15)
62% of C-suite leaders have no backfill or succession plan for their own role. Whether you’re part of a leadership team or a C-suite executive yourself, think about your future and the business you’re running right now — who will your backfill be? Is there someone on your current team you can grow and mentor into a larger role, to continue the transition and evolution of the company? Succession planning, and being truly strategic about what the future of the business looks like, is really critical.
Redesigning roles with a “future-back” lens aligns structure, vision, and execution. Founder transitions, when intentional, are among the most strategic levers for growth. So the question you should always be asking yourself is: are you built for now, or are you built for the future — and what’s next?
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