Diageo GB names Anna MacDonald as marketing and category director
Diageo appoints 20-year veteran Anna MacDonald as GB marketing and category director, replacing Ursula Mejía Melgar amid a transformation under CEO Dave Lewis.
Updated
The brief
- Anna MacDonald becomes Diageo GB marketing and category director after 20+ years at the company, most recently as global brand director for Captain Morgan.
- She replaces Ursula Mejía Melgar, who joined in April 2025 and leaves to become VP of marketing at Coca-Cola for Spain and Portugal.
- Diageo cut marketing spend 13% year-over-year in the year to 30 June and is cutting nearly 2,000 jobs under CEO Dave Lewis.
Diageo has appointed Anna MacDonald as its top marketer in Great Britain. She takes over as marketing and category director for the region, replacing Ursula Mejía Melgar.
Mejía Melgar held the role of marketing and innovation director since April 2025. She leaves to become vice-president of marketing for the Coca-Cola Company covering the Iberian peninsula, Spain and Portugal.
MacDonald brings more than two decades of experience at Diageo. Most recently she served as global brand director for Captain Morgan. Before that, she led Guinness in Great Britain for five years, overseeing the brand's rise to become the number one beer and non-alcoholic drink in the market.
The appointment comes as Diageo undergoes a significant transformation under new CEO Dave Lewis. Last month, reports emerged that the business is cutting almost 2,000 jobs. Lewis said he found a lot of "duplication" at the company.
Marketing budgets have not been spared. Diageo cut marketing spend by 13% year-over-year in the year to 30 June.
In its strategy update last month, the company signalled a stronger focus on category strategy rather than pure brand strategy. The goal, according to the company, is to "serve more customers on more occasions" across different price points.
MacDonald's remit as marketing and category director aligns directly with that shift, combining brand leadership with category-level responsibility.
Based on Marketing Week
Filed under diageo, anna-macdonald, marketing-leadership, appointment, beverage-alcohol
Priya Raman
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Correspondent covering industry trends and analytics at Marketing Herald.