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- 19th Global Water Drinks Congress
19th Global Water Drinks Congress
The highest level and most influential event for the global water drinks industry. Designed for industry leaders, suppliers, customers and advisers, this 19th annual Congress will provide a complete overview of the latest market trends, innovations and issues alongside networking opportunities with key industry figures. Insights will be shared by leading international and regional businesses on the latest market and strategic developments, as well as by innovators and entrepreneurs bringing new ideas and taking up new challenges.
Sponsors
Access your PDF copy of this year's Full Congress agenda
About
Zenith Global's annual Global Water Drinks Congress is regarded as the highest level and most influential forum for the global water drinks industry.
Designed for industry leaders, suppliers, customers and advisers, the Congress offers attendees a complete overview of the latest market trends, developments, innovation and issues, alongside extensive networking opportunities.
With the theme of ‘Packed with purpose’, to reflect the benefits of hydration and convenience, while recognising the challenges for social responsibility and sustainability, programme highlights include:
- Global market insights from IRI, Kantar and Rabobank
- Leadership perspectives from Danone, Coca-Cola, Niagara and Nestlé Waters
- Sustainability developments with Consumer Goods Forum, Natural Mineral Waters Europe and PepsiCo
- International updates from Gerolsteiner, Mahou San Miguel and Spritzer
- US innovation with Bossa Nova, Flow, Icelandic Glacial and Sanzo plus other pioneers from Chile, Switzerland and the United Kingdom
- A tour of the Evian production site and the Global Water Drinks Awards at a Gala Industry Dinner.
There will also be extensive opportunities for networking and a series of key issue round tables.
In keeping with the theme, it’s hard to imagine a programme that could be more packed with purpose. Delegates will have a chance to review all the key trends, update on the latest innovations discuss the most important issues and see one of the world’s most iconic filling operations in just 48 hours. They should return with full confidence in knowing all they need for their next phase of business planning.
Speakers include
Tuesday 8 November
Registration opens
Depart from hotel for brief journey to Evian bottling plant.
Welcome, introduction and tour including opportunity to view bottling lines and railway loading facility. Refreshments, visit to Evian shop and museum.
Coach returns at 13.00
Registration opens for Tour B (evian long tour)
Depart from hotel for brief journey to the impluvium (evian catchment plateau and biogas facility) followed by a visit to the evian bottling plant.
Welcome, introduction and tour including visit to the evian catchment plateau and biogas facility; opportunity to view bottling lines and railway loading facility; visit to evian shop and museum.
Coach returns at 18.00
Welcome drinks reception
Close
Wednesday 9 November
Andrew Walker, Client Knowledge Director at Kantar
Ananda Roy, Senior Vice President – Strategic Growth Insights for IRi International
François Sonneville, Global Strategist for Beverages Industry at Rabobank
Questions and discussion
Astrit Mulita, Project Manager for Lajthiza Water, Albania
Maurizio Patarnello, Industry Adviser and former Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Waters then Flow Alkaline Spring Water
Questions and discussion
Hydration and networking break around sponsor and exhibitor displays
Prinz Pinakatt, Global Head of Danone Waters
Ulises Ramirez, General Manager – Water Portfolio for Coca-Cola North America
Stefano Marini, President & Chief Executive Officer of Sanpellegrino Group, part of Nestlé Waters
Rali Sanderson, Executive Vice President – International for Niagara Bottling, United States
Alaa Hattab, President and Chief Executive Officer of Saniton Plastic
Lunch and networking break
Ignacio Galivan, Sustainability Director of The Consumer Goods Forum
Ron Khan, Global Vice President Packaging – Beverages for PepsiCo
Alessandro Pasquale, Owner and Chief Executive Officer of Mattoni 1873, Czech Republic and President of Natural Mineral Waters Europe
Vincent Le Guen, Vice President of Packaging, Moulds & Line Solutions for Sidel Group
Questions and discussion
Rehydration and networking break around sponsor and exhibitor displays
Roel Annega, Chief Executive Officer of Gerolsteiner
Jesus Nuñez Sanchez, Director General Unidad de Aguas for Mahou San Miguel
Kenny Lim, Group Chief Executive Officer of Spritzer, Malaysia and President of Asia Middle East Bottled Water Association
Questions and discussion
Close
Nigyar Makhmudova, Chief Growth Officer of Danone
Close
Thursday 10 November
Neil Kimberley, President of Bossa Nova
Jon Olafsson, Chairman of Icelandic Glacial
Nicholas Reichenbach, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Flow Alkaline Spring Water
Questions and discussion
The Impossible Row from Antarctica to South America
Jamie Douglas-Hamilton, Founder and Director of Actiph Water, United Kingdom
Hydration and networking break around sponsor and exhibitor displays
Sandro Roco, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sanzo, United States
Mike Hecker, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of BE WTR, Switzerland
Horacio Vasquez, Chief Executive Officer of AWA Solar, Chile
Questions and discussion
Lunch and networking break
Informal round tables of 5-10 delegates each to discuss key industry and market concerns and opportunities, such as
- Sustainability
- Packaging alternatives
- Water stewardship
- Innovation
- Functionality
- Claims
- E-commerce
Round tables report back to full session
Close
Speakers
Jamie Douglas-Hamilton
Founder and Director of Actiph Water, United Kingdom
Jamie founded ACTIPH water after rowing from Australia to Africa when he realised mixing small amounts of sea water with their water hydrated them faster than ordinary water.
Horacio Vásquez Mena
Chief Executive Officer of AWA Solar, Chile
Horacio Vásquez Mena is the founder and CEO of AWA Solar, a new way of producing and consuming water, which is 100% renewable, sustainable and recyclable.
Horacio graduated from Federico Santa María University in Chile with a degree in industrial engineering and began his career as a project and business manager in different renewable energy multinational companies in Chile and LATAM. He previously worked in SunEdison and X-Elio. He launched Lader Energy in 2016 and AWA Solar in 2021 with a mission of massify the use of renewable energies in all possible industries and countries to mitigate climate change and recover our planet
Mike Hecker
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of BE WTR, Switzerland
Mike Hecker is a Swiss based Food Tech Entrepreneur specialised in creating & building leading, technology driven, consumer brands & new categories.
Mike's main focus today is on impacting positively the planet with better, more responsible water hydration with www.bewtr.com. BE WTR innovates in upgrading tap water with patented technologies that positively impact taste & experience.
Neil Kimberley
President of Bossa Nova
Neil Kimberley is the incoming President of Bossa Nova beverages. He joins he brand after nine years helping to expand Essentia Water from its infancy with natural channel retailers to become a leading Premium Water with over $600M of retail sales.
He began his career in marketing with Snapple, becoming Brand Director during the brand’s growth in the late 1990s. In the 2000’s Neil became VP of Strategy at Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages – (now Dr Pepper Snapple) where he led an extensive strategic agenda in Non-Carbonated Beverages. Neil has also been involved with a number of emerging brands in the energy, protein, sparkling and CBD spaces. In the late 00’s he operated a small consulancy – Foods Fluids and Beyond before a stint at Hershey.
Neil is keen cricketer and scuba diver, living in Lancaster PA with his wife and daughter.
Ulises Ramirez
General Manager – Water Portfolio for Coca-Cola North America
Ulises Ramirez is global marketing executive who currently leads the North America Water Business for Coca-Cola.
Ulises holds a Global MBA from Instituto de Empresa in Madrid. He was also a Marketing Professor at Universidad Anahauc where he imparted the Brand Management course.
Ignacio Gavilan
Sustainability Director of Consumer Goods Forum
In his role, Ignacio leads the CGF’s Sustainability practice, covering two Coalitions of Action on Plastic Waste and Food Waste, that aims to position the consumer goods industry as a leader in protecting against climate change and reducing waste.
Prior to his current role, Ignacio worked as Founder & Principal Consultant at Accipiter, a sustainability advisory service where he helped SMEs working in international markets to create strategic sustainability roadmaps. He also brings experience from 15+ years working for large corporations such as McDonald’s, British Petroleum (renewable energy) and the mining company Anglo American.
Prinz Pinakatt
Global Head of Danone Waters
Prinz M. Pinakatt, Senior VP and Global Head of Danone Waters, leads the global waters team and is responsible for defining the vision and strategy for its portfolio of brands including evian and Volvic.
An innovative thinker and progressive marketing leader with a career spanning over two decades in five countries on three continents, Prinz has significant global experience in leading brand transformations across both start-ups and household name corporations including Zurich Insurance, Vita Coco and The Coca-Cola Company.
Prinz is of Indian heritage and grew up in Germany, and currently resides in United States with his wife and two children. A keen sporting fan, you’ll often find him pitch side watching football or on the court cheering on his children when playing tennis. Through evian’s long standing tennis sponsorships, Prinz is looking forward to engaging in the brand’s future with the likes of Wimbledon and the US Open.
Nigyar Makhmudova
Chief Growth Officer of Danone
Nigyar began her career in 1991 in pharmaceuticals sector before joining Mars in 1998.
Nicholas Reichenbach
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Flow Alkaline Spring Water
Nicholas is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur with a robust track record over the last 25 years, founding, investing, and building multiple businesses in consumer goods (Flow, SimplyProtein), social media (Rabbit),...
Mr. Reichenbach’s latest venture, where he holds the role of Founder, CEO and Chairman is Flow Beverage Corp. Flow is a sustainably packaged, alkaline spring water built on the power of mindful positivity. Flow holds a B-Corp certification and has partnered with Tetra Pak to disrupt the water category and build a brand that aligns with consumer values for sustainability, quality, health and wellness.
Roel Annega
Chief Executive Officer of Gerolsteiner
Born in the Netherlands, Roel Annega can look back on an international career in the FMCG market that turned him and his family into true European citizens.
After his last position at Coca-Cola as Vice President Marketing for Central and Southern Europe in Vienna, Annega moved back to Nestlé in Frankfurt am Main. Here he led the culinary business of Nestlé Deutschland AG as Chairman and Business Executive Officer, responsible for the brands “Maggi” and “Thomy”.
In June 2019 Annega returned to the beverage industry as Chairman and CEO of Gerolsteiner Brunnen. Annega is convinced that we are witnessing a pivotal time in the mineral water industry and is exited to help shape the future for both for the Gerolsteiner brand and for the category.
He is a member of the Board of both Verband Deutscher Mineralbrunnen as well as Natural Mineral Waters Europe.
Jon Olafsson
Chairman of Icelandic Glacial
Jon is a serial entrepreneur with history in media, telecommunications, banking, construction and consumer products.
Ananda Roy
International Senior Vice President – Strategic Growth Insights for IRi International
Ananda supports top corporate executives in FTSE-100 organisations identify & capitalise on growth opportunities, sharpen marketing effectiveness & optimisation, & use the power of analytics and data-driven inputs to make smart commercial decisions.
Andrew Walker
Client Knowledge Director at Kantar
Andrew has spent almost two decades at Kantar helping FMCG businesses make sense of consumer behaviour.
Astrit Mulita
Project Manager for Lajthiza
Jesús Nuñez Sanchez
Director General Unidad de Aguas for Mahou San Miguel
Jesús joined Mahou San Miguel in 2001 and has headed the Waters Business Unit since 2013.
Prior to that, he held various positions, Director of Labor Relationships, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility and General Manager of the Mahou San Miguel Foundation.
He is a lawyer and holds a Master's Degree in Human Resources Management from the IE Business School. In addition to other qualifications, he completed the Executive Development Program in Business Administration and Management in the IESE Business School at the University of Navarra, also holds a diploma in CSR from the Harvard Business School and a Higher Degree in Occupational Risk Prevention.
He started his professional business career in 1997 at Cuatrecasas, Gonçalves Pereira as an associate attorney in the labour area, moving two years later to Garrigues (Andersen Legal), where he worked before joining Mahou San Miguel.
Alessandro Pasquale
Owner and Chief Executive Officer of Mattoni 1873, Czech Republic and President of Natural Mineral Waters Europe
Stefano Marini
President & Chief Executive Officer of the Sanpellegrino Group at Nestlé Waters
Milan-born Stefano Marini is the President & Chief Executive Officer of the Sanpellegrino Group, a leading company in the mineral water and soft drink sector.
Marini joined the Sanpellegrino Group in 1999 . Over the years he held roles of increasing responsibility before becoming Head of Generating Demand at Nestlé Waters in 2012. In this position, Stefano helped to define strategies for the region covering the UK, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Greece, and Hungary, coordinating the marketing and sales teams across several European countries and managing the development of an international product portfolio .
In 2014, he returned to Italy to manage the Group's domestic market business as Head of the Italian Business Unit. He held this role until 2018, when the Sanpellegrino Group appointed him Business Executive Officer of the International Business Unit, tasked with helping to further grow Made in Italy brand ambassadors S.Pellegrino and Acqua Panna, across more than 150 countries in which the company is present.
Maurizio Patarnello
Industry Adviser and former Chief Executive Officer of Nestlé Waters then Flow Alkaline Spring Water
Rali Sanderson
Executive Vice President – International for Niagara Bottling, United States
Rali is Executive Vice President of International, Product Development, and Contract Manufacturing.
Ron Khan
Global Vice President Packaging – Beverages for PepsiCo
Francois Sonneville
Global Strategist for Beverages Industry at Rabobank
Francois Sonneville is a senior beverage analyst, specialized in the beer and soft drink sectors. He has been with Rabobank since 1999 and has held various analytical and commercial positions within the group.
Before joining Rabobank, Francois worked as a venture capital manager for GE Capital and as an equities and derivatives specialist for Barclays Bank in London. Francois graduated from Erasmus University Rotterdam with an MSc in Economics. He is married with two children. In his spare time he enjoys cycling, and skiing
Alaa Hattab
President and Chief Executive Officer of Saniton Plastic
Sandro Roco
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sanzo, United States
Sandro Roco is the founder and chief executive officer of Sanzo, the first Asian-inspired sparkling water brand.
Vincent Le Guen
Vice President of Packaging, Moulds & Line Solutions for Sidel Group
Vincent has been Vice President of Packaging since 2021 and leads Sidel’s Packaging, Moulds & Line Solutions.
Kenny Lim
Group Chief Executive Officer of Spritzer, Malaysia and President of Asia Middle East Bottled Water Association
Kenny was appointed the Group Chief Executive Officer of Spritzer Bhd in 2011. He has vast exposure in market strategy, sales, and marketing.
He believes in going beyond boundaries to provide a robust platform for the business to evolve and grow and has invested in automation and digitization to realize the goal of Smart Factory by 2025. Besides, he strongly believes in non-stop learning as it gives him the opportunity to learn new things every day as well as motivates him to learn and defeat the challenges which he come across. He attends the Vistage Chief Executive program as well as Young Presidents Organization.
Kenny graduated from San Francisco State University, United States with a Bachelor of Science in International Business, which inspired him to map out the transformation journey of Spritzer, prioritizing in its capacities as much as its products.
He sits on the Board of MAREA (Malaysian Recycling Alliance Berhad) founded by leaders in the FMCG industry and established in January 2021. It’s Malaysia’s first voluntary industry-led Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) group of companies to focus on boosting the value chain and significantly improve collection and recycling of post-consumer packaging. He is also in his 2nd term with ABWA as President.
Apart from discharging his duties for Spritzer, he is also committed to the development and welfare of the local businesses and school where he is the Committee Member of Northern Perak Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Head of Small Medium Enterprise Division, as well as the Acting Chairman to the Board of Governors of Hua Lian High School, Taiping.
Richard Hall
Event Moderator, Founder and Chairman of Zenith Global
Richard Hall is an acknowledged expert on the international food and drinks sector, chairing and speaking at numerous industry conferences as well as offering independent comment in a regular blog.
With a degree in Economics and Government from the University of Bath, where he was also Students’ Union President, he worked in the Group Commercial Department of UK dairy market leader Unigate before joining the Dairy Trade Federation as Economic Adviser.
In five years as a Director of the Dairy Trade Federation, he also served as its Head of Public Relations and as Secretary General of the European Federation of Dairy Retailers. From 1987 to 1990 he was Director and General Manager of beverage market consultancy Canadean.
He formed Zenith in 1991 as a specialist business consultancy for the food and drink industries. The company now has 30 staff working for more than 1,000 clients in over 50 countries. It provides a full range of consulting and market information services.
He also chairs FoodBev Media, which he founded in 2000. Its team of 15 staff publishes three business journals and manages the foodbev.com website.
Richard has undertaken many consultancy projects over the past 30 years as well as helping form several industry organisations, including the foundation and chairmanship of the Natural Hydration Council. In 2010 he was Series Consultant for the BBC Money Programme series on The Foods That Make Billions.
In 2013 he completed six years as Chairman of the Bath & North East Somerset Quartet Community Foundation, after two years as Chairman of the Bath City of Festivals Steering Group and two previous years as President of Bath Chamber of Commerce. He is currently Chairman of The Royal High School Bath and a Director of Bath Philharmonia.
Attendees
Each year, the Global Water Drinks Congress attracts 150-200 business leaders, suppliers, entrepreneurs, retailers, industry advisers and media worldwide.
This year's registered attendees include:
Location and hotel
Situated on the shores of Lake Geneva in South Eastern France, Evian is a prestigious holiday resort and spa town, chosen for over two centuries by royalty and celebrities from around the world.
Set in 47 acres of woodland, the 5-star Hotel Royal overlooks the town of Evian, with breath-taking views of lake Geneva and the Alps. Fully refurbished in 2015, it has 150 rooms, three restaurants and the Evian Source spa, with indoor and outdoor heated swimming pools. The Evian resort also offers a golf course where the annual Evian Championship takes place and a casino.
For delegates wishing to book accommodation, an allocation of rooms is available at negotiated rates on a strictly first come, first served basis. To download the booking form, please click here. Please note that the Hotel Royal is approximately 55km from Geneva International Airport.
Hotel Royal, 13 Avenue des Mateirons, 74500 Evian-les-Bains, France t + 33 4 50 26 85 00 w www.hotel-royal-evian.com/en
Visas may be required from source countries. Zenith will be happy to help with visa support documentation where possible.
Tour
Delegates of the 19th Global Water Drinks Congress will have the opportunity to explore the carbon-neutral evian bottling plant.
The evian short tour (Tour A) will include a welcome, introduction and tour including the opportunity to view bottling lines and railway loading facility, a visit to the Evian shop and museum.
The evian long tour (Tour B) will additionally include a visit to the impluvium (evian catchment plateau and biogas facility).
EVIAN FACTS AND FIGURES
- €280 million investment at Evian from 2011 to 2020
- 1,200 employees
- B-Corp and carbon neutral certifications
- 30 years of the public-private association which preserves the evian natural mineral water quality
- 13 production lines up to 72,000 bottles per hour
- Powered by 100% renewable energy
- Treats and recycles 100% of waste
- Exports to 140 countries
- Currently 40% recycled plastic
| Pay by 12 Aug Super saver rate | Pay by 28 Sep Early booking rate | Pay by 8 Nov Standard booking rate | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full Congress | Each delegate | €1,495.00 | €1,695.00 | €1,895.00 |
| Concession* | €695.00 | €895.00 | ||
| Separate elements | 8 Nov tours/reception | €300.00 | €350.00 | |
| 9 Nov conference | €900.00 | €950.00 | ||
| 9 Nov awards dinner | €150.00 | €200.00 | ||
| 10 Nov conference | €700.00 | €750.00 |
*A concession rate is offered to start-ups and early-stage entrepreneurs. To be eligible, you must have annual sales below €1 million. For more information and to book at this rate, please contact events@zenithglobal.com
Substitutions will be accepted at any time. Cancellations will be subject to €150 + VAT administration charge per delegate and cannot be made after 28 September. Bookings are subject to Zenith Global Event Terms and Conditions, available here.
All delegates must pay VAT at the prevailing rate in France. The rate may be subject to change.
Visas may be required from some countries. Zenith Global will be happy to help with visa support and document where possible.
| Pay by 10 Nov Standard booking rate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Livestream | Each delegate | €790.00 |
| Concession* | €390.00 |
For those of you who cannot join us in Brussels, we are pleased to announce that livestream registration for this year’s industry-leading event is now open!
As a livestream attendee, you can view all conference sessions and panel discussions on 9 and 10 November, live and on-demand, and engage in real-time interactive polling and speaker Q&A to ensure you’re a part of the conversation.
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Substitutions will be accepted until 9 November. Cancellations will be subject to an €80 + VAT administration charge per delegate. Bookings are subject to Zenith Global Event Terms and Conditions, available here.
*A concession rate is offered to start-ups and early-stage entrepreneurs. To be eligible, you must have annual sales below €1 million. For more information and to book at this rate, please contact events@zenithglobal.com
Sponsorship
Our event and awards sponsorship packages offer a unique and effective opportunity to showcase your brand and services to a highly relevant audience.
You can choose from our Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze sponsorship packages, or we can create a custom sponsorship package to suit your specific needs and budgetary requirements.
Sponsorship opportunities include:
- Presentation within the main event programme
- Opportunity to host a workshop, roundtable or drinks reception
- Exhibit display in the networking area
- Distribution of marketing material / product samples
- Delegate passes
- Discounted delegate access for your clients
- Branding across event collateral, including stage backdrop, lectern and programme
- Logo on event webpage hyperlinked to your website
- Sponsored email communication to all attendees
- Sponsored social media posts
- Regular mentions in Zenith Global's event marketing and press releases
- Discounts on Zenith Global market reports
For information and pricing, please contact Francesca Hall, Associate Director - Events
e fhall@zenithglobal.com t +44 (0)1225 327900
Awards
The industry's only Global Water Drinks Awards are designed to celebrate excellence and innovation across every category of the packaged water industry.
The awards are a great way for you to enhance your brand and ensure your product, concept or campaign is recognised on an international scale.
Entries are open until 23 September, and the winners will be announced on 9 November 2022, during Zenith Global's 19th Global Water Drinks Congress.
The categories
- Best Natural Still Water
- Best Natural Sparkling Water
- Best Flavoured Water
- Best Functional Water
- Best CBD Water
- Best Hard Seltzer
- Best New Brand
- Best Brand Extension
- Best New Water Concept
- Best in Can
- Best in Carton
- Best in Glass
- Best in PET
- Best Packaging/Label Design
- Best Cap/Closure
- Best Technology Innovation
- Best Marketing/Social Media Campaign
- Best CSR Initiative
For more information, visit the awards page on our website or contact awards@zenithglobal.com.
