Frank Ceulemans' sparkling adventure at Suntory is over with a "great level of satisfaction"

After five intense years at the helm of Suntory Benelux, the FMCG industry veteran has simply decided to take a break. Frank Ceulemans feels a "huge degree of satisfaction" looking back and has planned a well-deserved family vacation for the occasion.

© SBF Benelux.

"A real business detox." Although his resignation from the position of General Manager at Suntory Beverage & Food Benelux, one of the Japanese giant's subsidiaries that owns brands such as Orangina and Schweppes, was announced on April 30, Frank Ceulemans only made it public this Tuesday. For the sake of transparency, he told us that he had completely disconnected from the business world since then, spending most of his time under the Moroccan sun.

Industrial accident? Management disagreement? Oh no. Nothing tumultuous precipitated his departure after these last five rather unexciting years. "It's the end of a cycle. I started at a time when there was no growth; we were in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. Everything was being called into question: the market, the future. When I look back at where we've arrived, we've recorded growth of nearly 45%, reaching €145 million in revenue today," says the now-former CEO.

When Frank Ceulemans recounts the developments he has had the opportunity to lead, the infectious enthusiasm in his voice demonstrates his satisfaction. In Belgium, he participated in the installation of an entirely new sales team, a leadership team based at the current headquarters on Rue du Cerf in Genval.

A feeling of accomplishment

On the commercial front, the former captain looks back on some great successes. "We repositioned two brands, Schweppes and Oasis, and made them much more up-to-date," he explains, without even mentioning that they received the 2025 Product of the Year award.

Citing the unique context of the soft drinks market, which remains under pressure, Frank Ceulemans nevertheless notes the significant growth in the energy drinks and so-called functional drinks market. "We just introduced the American brand Celsius two months ago in Belgium and last week in the Netherlands," he emphasizes.

Meanwhile, even on the logistical front, there are changes in the pipeline. The first historic site outside the United Kingdom of a small Indian Tonic factory in the 1930s, Genval will see Suntory Benelux move its warehouse next September to Nivelles.

The other teams will be moving to new, more modern offices near Hoeilaert. "Experience the local dimension, the proximity to Genval, having both the warehouse and the on-trade/off-trade part, but also an EXCOM of which I was a member and which manages 46 countries from Amsterdam, it's a bit of an ideal mix so that no two working days are the same," says the young ex-CEO, illustrating his point by explaining that everything is different between Warsaw, Poland, and Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

Need for new perspectives

Looking back, Frank Ceulemans acknowledges he's come a long way in the past 60 months, with some significant milestones achieved. "But replicating that progress won't be for me," he smiles, emphasizing that it's always necessary to reinvent oneself. "For that, Suntory needs new blood, different perspectives. Also in terms of mindset."

A loyal marketer who rose through the ranks from assistant to VP at Dutch giant Unilever, Frank admits that after 28 years in the business, he never imagined he'd be able to have fun elsewhere, in another company. Yet, he says he loved the Suntory experience so much. This is because of one fundamental difference that "really fascinated him: unwavering ambition." He has thus adopted the Suntorians' mantra: Yatte Minahare , a shout of encouragement inspired by the founder, meaning "let's go" in Japanese, to remind himself never to give up.

This is the mindset adopted to, for example, adapt to changes in direct markets, at the level of strategic issues such as distribution and sales channels. "At the channel level, we have seen the explosion of proximity to the detriment of supermarkets, it's a big one that we are seeing in Belgium but also throughout Europe," he points out, explaining that at Suntory, we have changed team structures in order to have more visibility and access to local channels. He adds that "it's a reallocation that we have also carried out on-trade to have proximity to our teams via drink centers, with cafes, human contact remains crucial."

“Out-of-Home has become harder and more expensive”

Still on the subject of interesting developments for the foodservice industry, Frank Ceulemans cites out-of-home consumption as "THE channel for building brands. In Belgium, it represents nearly 20% of turnover. It's a business that has experienced very difficult years due to the coronavirus, and there remains pressure on the market, which has still not fully recovered."

He remains convinced of the future of out-of-home, even though it's worth noting that "it's become a harder and more expensive business. There are many more groups with a broader presence and many more brands. There are fewer bars and restaurants, and the battle to be top of mind costs more money," he adds.

These are all considerations that Frank will be keeping at a distance for the next few months. "For me, it's now vacation time. I had started a lot of projects over the past five years that have been somewhat put on the back burner. I'm going to focus now on getting a good handicap in golf, surfing in Essaouira, and spending quality time with my family," he plans. Speaking of which, one of his daughters will soon be getting married, and the other will be flying to Hamburg where she will join Beiersdorf, the German group behind the iconic Nivea brand.

"After that, we'll see," concludes the former General Manager of Beverage & Food Benelux. Headhunters can rest assured, Frank Ceulemans has already announced that after his summer break, he will be "available for executive and non-executive roles."