Cobra Beer appoints Avellano

Cobra Beer has named the man who will be breaking the Indian premium beer into new export markets over the coming years. International sales manager Mark Avellano will be overseeing Cobra’s European exports and exploring the Russian and Canadian export markets for future development.
Avellano, who moves to Cobra after 13 years with Wells and Young’s, will work alongside sales manager for Asia, Australasia, the Middle East and Africa, Bruce Walker. Cobra’s international team is headed up by business development director Chris Edgcumbe Rendle, who has overall responsibility for oversees sales.
Edgcumbe Rendle said: “I’m delighted to have Mark joining the international sales team at Cobra. Mark has outstanding experience of the drinks export market with over 10 years export experience at Charles Wells and latterly Wells & Young’s. I’m confident Mark can help us drive our international growth on to even greater heights.”
Avellano takes over from Iqbal Ahmed, who is leaving the firm to pursue other business interests after 11 years in the Cobra fold. He said: “This is an exciting opportunity to work with a brand that is very much on the up. Cobra already holds a strong position in some key European markets and I’ll be aiming to drive further growth in these countries and explore other world markets that are showing good potential.”
Cobra currently has a group turnover of around £126 million in retail value and is available in 50 countries across the world. The beer is brewed in the UK, Belgium, Poland and India. In February Cobra told Brewers’ Guardian that it had its sights set on winning a 10% share of Indian market value by 2012.