CAREERS: How much are you really worth?

Find out what other drinks professionals earn – from wine buyer and marketing manager to master distiller – and salivate over our BoardEx drinks business salary survey. Patrick Schmitt reports

Let’s face it, most of us don’t go into the drinks industry for the money. But for those of you shifting boxes in a wine warehouse, living off toast and wondering how you’ll afford next month’s rent, it might be comforting to view the financial rewards for those at the top (or sickening, depending on your outlook). As many as seven of the leading figures in the drinks world take home over £1 million every year, and that’s excluding share options, while the average pay for executive directors is over £800,000.

Not bad, but then again, as Dominick Sutton, director of BoardEx, compiler of this salary survey, says, “Big drinks companies are complicated things to run. You expect the guys at the top to earn a lot and they do.” In fact, average pay at this level for those in the drinks sector is higher than it is for those in food or hotels.

Getting to such a position is also complicated, and sadly there’s no blueprint, but we have profiled a few characters working in different roles at different – and rather lower – levels in the drinks industry to give you an idea of what various jobs entail and how those people doing them, got there.

As for the drinks industry’s biggest cheeses and what they take home, this list proves that leading alcoholic drinks companies have the scale and profitability to reward those heading them handsomely. Furthermore, as Sutton says, “One always expects an American to be at the top of the league because they pay themselves a lot more.”

In fact, the multinational nature of major drinks companies means top salaries are more uniform, and as companies move into the US, salaries tend to increase. Sutton suggests this was the case when South African Breweries (SAB) merged with Miller. In terms of pay, he says, “It could be the Miller tail waving the SAB dog.”

The data for this survey was taken from companies in the drinks industry that have public accounts and are listed on the stock exchange, and hence there are certain companies and people that are not included, although one might expect them to feature. LVMH’s Bernard Arnault is one of them, majority shareholder in the luxury conglomerate, which doesn’t currently disclose its board members’ salaries. Sutton notes that Arnault had a salary alone of £900,000 back in 2002 (the last time such data was recorded) and had £7.5m in equity-linked options, but in any case, LVMH is more than a drinks company.

It is also worth noting that the list is based just on direct pay, because, according to Sutton, “That’s the folding stuff, the real measure of what you get.” He does admit, however, that the people in these lists will
have a lot of money in options.

Finally, it is interesting to see that Maurice Pratt from C&C Group features – presumably he is being rewarded for the success of Magners Irish Cider, owned by the Dublin-based company.

Knowledge not essential
So what are the necessary skills for climbing the drinks industry ladder? Traditionally, the focus may have been on product knowledge, measured through WSET qualifications, and although these are still important, as Christian Hughes, director at Match Consultants says, “There is a massive misconception that product knowledge alone is going to get you into the trade.” Also needed for roles in sales and management are account management skills, account planning know-how and category management expertise. An understanding of logistics is also important, especially when dealing with the major multiples.

And because of the need for a wide set of skills, “the drinks industry is more open to people from different backgrounds,” believes David Hillman, managing director of headhunters MRI Worldwide. When Hillman began recruiting for the drinks industry seven years ago he found “most wanted people from the drinks industry, but now, apart from on-trade specific roles, the drinks trade is more open to bringing in people from other disciplines, for example food, pharmaceuticals, sports goods.” Why the change? “It’s due to the strength of the major supermarket chains,” believes Hillman, and the fact they expect the same professional service from all their suppliers.

However, Hughes at Match points out that those in the drinks industry tend to earn 15-20% less than counterparts in other FMCG industries. “A national account manger for McVities, for instance, might earn £65-£70,000 while a national account manager at a company like Western Wines might earn around £55,000.”

With regard to smaller companies David Pilkington of recruitment consultancy Pilkington Webster, notes that employers still look for candidates from within the drinks industry, “They need someone who can hit the ground running,” he says, “and two out of three jobs are filled through contacts.” He also records that the standard of candidates is “not as good as five years ago because companies are not investing in training. Investing in skills means taking people off the road, which is a cost in terms of time and money, and companies can’t always afford to do that, especially with margins being squeezed.”

This perhaps explains a trend identified by Hughes at Match. “Employers are looking for the finished article, they are not taking on a junior and training them up.” he says.

They are also “increasingly understanding the benefits of using head hunters rather than advertising to get a specific result,” says Hillman.

There is no model route into the drinks industry or standard way to progress through it. However, Hughes stresses that if there is a structured career path to becoming a national account manager it would begin with shop work and sales support, followed by a regional sales role, and then maybe a supporting role for a national account manager, before possibly managing a smaller account and then taking on a major national account. However, there are many more roles in the drinks industry than account management, so we’ve spoken to a wide selection of industry professionals to gain a better understanding of their roles.

© db November 2006