William Grant Appoints Diageo Veteran As General Manager, Commercial For The U.S.

William Grant & Sons has named Michael Leestma as general manager, commercial for the U.S. market. He comes to Grant from Diageo, where he spent 13 years, most recently as vice president, national sales for the Diageo Beer Company. Prior to that he led several financial and strategic initiatives within Diageo Spirits.

In his new role, Leestma will oversee all commercial elements at William Grant & Sons USA, including regional sales, national accounts, commercial planning, route-to-consumer, e-commerce, and net revenue management. According to Impact Databank, William Grant had U.S. volume of 3.4 million cases last year, up 4%.

“Michael has a very strong, multi-faceted background in sales, commercial strategy, distributor management, and national account leadership,” said Paul Basford, president and managing director, USA at William Grant & Sons. “Under the stewardship of Michael, the full U.S. William Grant & Sons commercial remit will ultimately come together under one lead. We’re thrilled for the added value this updated structure will bring; adding focus, better resource allocation, and a more agile and collaborative way of working as we accelerate our growth.”—Daniel Marsteller

GET YOUR FIRST LOOK AT 2025 ESTIMATES AND 2030 PROJECTIONS FOR THE WINE AND SPIRITS INDUSTRIES. ORDER YOUR 2025 IMPACT DATABANK REPORTS. CLICK HERE.