Heineken counts on the female touch

Is Heineken breaking the glass ceiling for women or has the brewer run out of male candidates wanting to turn around a struggling brand? In October 2011, Heineken USA announced the appointment of Olga Osminkina, most recently Executive Director of Global Marketing for cosmetics company Estée Lauder, as its Senior Brand Director for Heineken Lager.

From face paint to brews. Interesting. What could the two have in common?

Ms Osminkina is the second high-profile woman to have been hired by Heineken USA. At the end of February 2011, the brewer appointed Lesya Lysyj as the company’s U.S. Chief Marketing Officer. Ms Lysyj had previously worked for Kraft Food’s confectionery division. “Both of the categories are lifestyle categories, and they represent a treat in somebody’s day,” Ms Lysyj then explained her career move to Adweek, a trade publication.

The women’s task is a serious one: turning around Heineken, an iconic beer brand that has lost ground to fast-rising imports such as Stella Artois and craft beers.

The U.S. market continues to face extreme difficulties. In the period January through September 2011 U.S. beer production was down 1.9 percent over 2010 according to the Beer Institute.

Perhaps these women can succeed where their male predecessors have failed. In any case, we wish them good luck.