Last month, Stone Brewing announced it was parting ways with man of many hats, Chief Commercial Officer Dan Lamb, who oversaw the North San Diego County company’s sales and marketing. The announcement came in the form of a letter to staffers from Lamb, which was sent out in mid-February. Rather than hire someone to direct all of the areas, Stone has reorganized its executive level, eliminating the CCO role and going back to a structure with two vice presidents in charge of sales and marketing.
Last week marked the arrival of, Erin Smith, the company’s newly minted Vice President of Marketing. A veteran marketer with 15 years of experience—almost all gained in the alcoholic-beverage industry—Smith came over from PAX Labs. There, she led the electronic-vaporizer (which developed Juul e-cigarettes) company’s marketing team through a consumer-insight and data-informed identity refresh and its shift into the cannabis space. Prior to that, she spent three years with Constellation Brands, where she headed the wine and spirits innovation team. Prior to that, she spent six years with E&J Gallo Winery in Northern California where she was Marketing Manager for its Viniq Shimmery Liqueur and E&J Brandy.
“Erin is an incredible match for this team. She has experience leading innovation, and brings a very strategic and insights-driven approach,” says Stone CEO Maria Stipp. “Additionally, Erin has worked on alcoholic beverages that have lifestyle-brand appeal, something that we always wish to strive for. We have a lot of big things in the works for Stone and look forward to Erin’s leadership to help us grow Stone with authenticity and breakthrough marketing in this very crowded craft-beer landscape.”
Stipp and Smith have a good deal in common. The former also came over from a Northern California business that shares parallels with Stone, Lagunitas Brewing. That took place last summer following, but in her short time with the company, she has already helped reshape the company and take it in new directions.
Since coming aboard, she has brought on new Chief Financial Officer Sean McCarthy as well as a trio of vice presidents: Zach Keeling (Strategy), Kristin Perales (Human Resources) and Smith. She has also led efforts to get behind Stone Distributing Co. in a big way. In February, Stone acquired a 110,000-square-foot distribution warehouse in San Marcos previously operated by Markstein Beverage Co., shortly after retracting its distro arm out of Northern California to focus on territories closer to home. She has also played a key role in portfolio development, steering the brand to produce beers that appeal to a broader spectrum of consumers than aggressive IPAs and hop-driven ales, with Stone Buenaveza Salt and Lime Lager and the just-released Stone Dayfall Belgian White as key examples. Stipp hopes Smith can have the same immediate impact on the quarter-century-old company.
“Stone is an icon in craft beer and an innovative leader with exciting growth potential as the company evolves to welcome fans of all beer styles,” says Smith. “I am honored to help lead this beloved brand into the future, ensuring we continue to delight our longstanding, loyal fan base, as well as anyone seeking the very best beer experiences. I couldn’t be happier to take on this role with this very talented team.”