Brown-Forman CEO Whiting to retire

Jack Daniel’s parent company searching for a new leader as CEO stepping down after nearly 30 years with the company

2:15 p.m. July 14, 2026

DUANE CROSS
MCO Publisher•Editor

Brown-Forman CEO Lawson Whiting plans to retire once the Louisville-based spirits company names his successor, ending more than seven years at the helm of Jack Daniel’s parent company.

Brown-Forman announced the planned retirement Monday, July 13. Whiting will remain president and CEO while the company’s board conducts a search that will include candidates from inside and outside Brown-Forman.

The company did not identify any potential successors or set a timetable for completing the search.

Whiting will remain available as an adviser for a period after the new CEO takes over to help maintain business continuity and support the transition.

The search will be led by the board’s Corporate Governance and Nominating Committee, chaired by Tracy Skeans.

“Lawson has been a steadfast steward of founder George Garvin Brown’s vision,” Brown-Forman Chairman Marshall B. Farrer said.

Farrer said Whiting gave the company enough notice to conduct a broad review of internal and external candidates. Whiting will continue overseeing Brown-Forman’s strategy and operations during the search.

Whiting joined Brown-Forman in 1997 and held a series of positions in finance, strategy, brand management, and international operations. He joined the company’s executive leadership team in 2013 and became CEO on Jan. 1, 2019.

The board said Jack Daniel’s expanded into new international markets and product categories during Whiting’s tenure. Brown-Forman also said Old Forester tripled in volume and increased net sales sixfold during the past decade, while Woodford Reserve continued growing in the super-premium American whiskey market.

Whiting called leading Brown-Forman “the privilege of a lifetime.”

“From my earliest days with the company to my time as CEO, my tenure has been defined by the extraordinary people I have worked alongside,” Whiting said.

He said he expects the company’s succession process to identify the right leader for its next stage of growth.

Transition comes during difficult market

The leadership change comes as Brown-Forman navigates a difficult market for distilled spirits, although the company did not say Whiting’s retirement was related to its recent financial performance.

Brown-Forman reported $3.9 billion in net sales for the fiscal year that ended April 30, down 1% from the previous year. Operating income fell 10% to $1 billion, while diluted earnings per share declined 17%.

Net sales in the United States fell 7% on a reported basis but were flat on an organic basis.

Brown-Forman attributed the reported U.S. decline to the end of its relationship with Korbel Champagne Cellars, the absence of revenue from a previous Sonoma-Cutrer transition agreement, lower volumes of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, and an unfavorable product mix.

Those declines were partially offset by the launch of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Blackberry and continued growth from Woodford Reserve.

Across Brown-Forman’s whiskey portfolio, net sales increased 3%. The company said Tennessee Blackberry, Woodford Reserve, and favorable currency movements helped offset lower sales of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey.

Brown-Forman expects the challenging business environment to continue during fiscal 2027. The company projects approximately flat organic net sales and a 3% to 5% decline in organic operating income.

The company reiterated that outlook Monday and made no revisions to its financial projections.

Wolf Pen Branch, which represents the Brown family’s controlling interest in Brown-Forman, endorsed the board’s search and said it remains confident in the company’s competitive position and financial strength.

Jack Daniel’s remains central to Brown-Forman

The succession is directly connected to Moore County because Jack Daniel’s remains central to Brown-Forman’s business.

Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey is distilled and bottled at the Jack Daniel Distillery in Lynchburg.

Brown-Forman’s financial disclosures list the company’s dependence on the continued growth of the Jack Daniel’s family of brands as one of its principal business risks.