Julie Harris, new CEO of IWSR. Image courtesy IWSR.

IWSR Drinks Market Analysis has appointed Julie Harris as its new CEO. The transition comes following Mark Meek’s decision to step back from the CEO role and to take up a non-executive director position within the company.

Julie Harris joins from Comparison Technologies, a tech-enabled comparison and customer acquisition platform in the home digital services market, where she has been CEO since 2019. Prior to this, Julie has held several CEO roles across a number of sectors, including WGSN, the global leader in trend forecasting for the fashion and retail industry.

Harris said of her appointment: “I am delighted to be joining the very talented team at IWSR at such an exciting stage in its evolution and to build on the phenomenal growth of the last few years. Mark leaves the company in fantastic shape and I look forward to working with our global teams to continue to develop new and exciting products for our valued clients.”

Under Mark Meek’s leadership, IWSR delivered annual revenue growth of 20 per cent and significantly expanded the coverage and functionality of its core database. The company also developed a range of new products, including annual strategic consumer sentiment studies on topical issues such as ecommerce, no-and-low alcohol drinks and the impact of Covid-19. The company also acquired Wine Intelligence France, broadening its coverage of the wine sector.

Meek, outgoing CEO of IWSR commented: “I’m incredibly proud of what the IWSR team has accomplished, with the support of Bowmark, since the management transitioned from our founder. The business has grown strongly, and we’ve considerably enlarged our talent base and product range. The future continues to look bright. So now, after nearly 10 years, I believe it is a great moment to hand over the reins of the business to the talented Julie Harris. I look forward to being part of the IWSR story as a non-executive and will give Julie all my support to ease her into the new role.”

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