Asia-Pacific Power List 2022: Deepika Warrier, Diageo

Deepika Warrier

Chief marketing officer
Diageo
India
New member  

Diageo India faced a tumultuous 2020 with the departure of previous CMO Julie Bramham as well as the sale of its wine business, incurring a loss of US$2.5 million for the company. When Deepika Warrier was sworn in as India CMO in 2020—following two illustrious decades at PepsiCo—things seemed to turn around for the brand. 

Warrier, together with newly instated CEO Hina Nagarajan, make up a women-forward leadership team. With this, fresher and more progressive marketing strategies have been put forward that’s already beginning to reap rewards for Diageo, such as a 10% YOY increase in sales in its last financial year. Because women are becoming an increasingly important growth cohort for the brand, Warrier and her team are redesigning strategies to cater to this group on top of the growing millennial segment who have come of legal drinking age. 

Craft—particularly local craft—has also been top-of-mind for Warrier. Internally, Diageo has set up a crafts council to more efficiently collaborate with local craftspeople and artisans. But one of the most notable craft efforts in Warrier’s portfolio so far has been the launch of Godawan earlier this year, a single-malt whisky product which uses barley from Rajasthan. Each bottle of this product is designed to be completely traceable right down to its ingredients, packaging material, the liquid, and even its water source. Designed as a premium offering for India’s affluent consumer group, Warrier said that the marketing around the product will be limited, so as to focus on advocacy and exclusivity. Adding to the local craft angle was the 2021 launch of Epitome Reserve, a small-batch artisanal rice whisky also using local ingredients. 

On the ESG side, Diageo laid out its 10-year sustainability plan which includes reaching more than one billion people with messages of alcohol moderation, changing the attitudes of five million drivers towards drink driving, and educating over 10 million people on the dangers of underage drinking. Through all of this, Warrier has had a busy year in revamping the brand catalogue as well as rethinking the role of a ‘progressive’ alcohol brand in the modern world—and Diageo is lucky to have her by its side.