Probiotic beverage brand Yakult has appointed Shinji Yamaguchi as the next managing director to succeed Hiroaki Yoshimura, who is transferring to the company’s European headquarters as MD of Yakult Europe.

Yoshimura is departing from the role after serving as MD for eight years, where he managed European campaigns aimed at growing consumer awareness of gut health.

Yamaguchi brings over three decades of experience within Yakult to the role, having worked in senior leadership positions across sales, logistics and operations.

According to the business, his worldwide experience brings in the skills of connecting corporate objectives with local priorities.

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In his most recent role, he worked in Yakult’s International Business Division in Japan, where he led market development plans as well as strengthened the brand capabilities across the business globally.

Yamaguchi said: “My focus is to build on that by making clear, informed decisions that strengthen trust with consumers, customers and the wider category.

“It’s particularly encouraging to see the strong awareness of gut health here, not only among consumers but also within the scientific and medical communities who already work closely with our European Research Centre for Microbiology and science team based in the UK.”

The appointment comes as there is a rapid increase within the gut health category as retailers have increasing demand for brands to provide products for gut-health-conscious shoppers.