Kreol Group names Vishwanath Iyer Chief Operating Officer

Kreol Group has named Vishwanath Iyer as its new Chief Operating Officer, where he will be responsible for leading operational strategy and execution across the company. His remit includes the travel retail channel, the B2B apparel and lifestyle business, and the e-commerce verticals.

Left to right: Lal Arakulath, Chief Executive Officer of Kreol Group; Vishwanath Iyer, Chief Operating Officer; and Kreol Arakulath, Executive Director

Iyer brings more than 20 years of leadership experience across FMCG, beverages, and travel retail. Prior to joining Kreol Group, he held senior roles at Beam Suntory, Diageo, and PepsiCo, where he led account management, operations, supply chain, and commercial strategy across international markets. He also served as head of buying and supply chain at Delhi Duty Free under GMR Group, overseeing category buying and vendor management for one of India’s largest airport retail operations.

The appointment comes as Kreol Group, a UAE-based diversified business group with interests across consumer goods channels, continues to expand its footprint across modern trade and travel retail, alongside broader growth in its B2B apparel and lifestyle operations.

Lal Arakulath, Chief Executive Officer of Kreol Group, said: “We’re delighted to have Vishwanath join the Kreol Group family. His leadership comes at an important time as we scale our business to new heights.”

Kreol Arakulath, executive director, said: “At this juncture of our growth journey, it was important that whomever we took on board had both brand-side and retailer-side experience across multiple categories in order to match our ambitions for operational excellence and high-performance team-building. Vishwanath brings both these perspectives to the table, as a celebrated addition to our organization."

Vishwanath Iyer said: “I’m excited to join Kreol Group at this pivotal stage. With my background in global brand houses and travel retail operators, I see tremendous opportunity to strengthen operations across our travel retail markets, B2B apparel & lifestyle business, and ecommerce. I look forward to working with Lal, Kreol, and the team to build efficient systems and deliver more value for partners and customers.”