BAT Ireland’s leadership team has experienced a recent shakeup, with several key personnel changes and key external hires in 2023.
David Melinn has stepped into the prestigious role of country manager.
Key accounts expert Noel Ryan, who has been with the company since 2006, now joins the leadership team, while Rosalind O’Sullivan, who joined the company in April 2023, will lead on BAT’s engagement with Government, regulatory stakeholders, and the media.
These new appointments join experienced senior trade managers Treasa Flynn and Adrian MacSweeney on the leadership team.
1. David Melinn, Country Manager
David hails from Malahide, Co Dublin and in April of this year was promoted from his previous role as BAT/PJ Carroll’s head of key accounts to the Ireland country manager position, taking over from Simon Carroll.
A graduate of the DIT College of Marketing, he brings nearly two decades of experience in the Irish combustibles market to the role, having begun his early career in BAT as a trade marketing representative, before rising through the ranks to become a national account manager in 2012, an area sales manager in 2018 and head of key accounts from 2019.
David joins BAT’s UK & Ireland leadership team in his new role as country manager for Ireland.
2. Noel Ryan, Head of Key Accounts
Noel Ryan recently received his third promotion since joining BAT in 2006, taking over David Melinn’s former position as head of key accounts.
Noel previously served as a national account manager and as wholesale and vending channel manager, and he began his early career as a business development executive.
Noel hails from Co Limerick and is now based in Enfield, Co Meath.
A qualified teacher, Noel transitioned into the FMCG sector and learned the trade through several merchandising and sales roles with CPM and PR Reilly, before building his career in BAT for the past 17 years.
3. Treasa Flynn, Head of Activations
Treasa Flynn’s career at BAT spans nineteen years, during which time she got PJ Carroll’s telemarketing department off the ground and worked as a key account manager, before going on to become an area manager, managing the Dublin sales team and subsequently the entire sales force as trade marketing manager.
Treasa played a key role in leading the launch of BAT’s vaping products in the Irish market, which led to her transition into a new role as Head of Activations, with a focus on BAT's reduced risk product offering, including Vuse vapes and VELO nicotine pouches.
Treasa previously worked for KBC bank and GE and is a proud native of Co Cork.
4. Adrian MacSweeney, Head of Sales
Adrian represents another longstanding member of the BAT team.
A graduate of economics at UCC, he has built his career in the FMCG space, working in the alcohol and confectionary sectors before joining BAT.
Born and bred in Tramore, Co Waterford, Adrian cut his teeth as a regional sales representative for the south-east when he joined BAT in 2005.
From here, he climbed the ladder to serve in several leadership roles, including Area sales manager and subsequently change manager, before assuming his current position as head of sales, which he has held since 2020.
5. Rosalind O’ Sullivan, Government Affairs Manager
Rosalind is an experienced public affairs and public relations professional, with a background in diplomacy and law.
She joined BAT in April 2023, coming from campaigns agency Red Flag where she worked on award-winning projects for the pharmaceutical, cryptocurrency and FMCG sectors.
A former civil servant, the Dubliner previously worked for the Houses of the Oireachtas Legal Services and the Department of Foreign Affairs, at the Irish Mission to the United Nations in New York, and the Irish Embassy in The Hague.
Rosalind takes over from Olivia Brennan, who has moved to a new London-based government affairs role with BAT UK.
Read More: BAT Ireland On Transitioning Revenue From Cigarettes To New Category Products
© 2023 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Maev Martin. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
