Sandra Amachree: Igniting Innovation as Nigeria Breweries’ Marketing Maven

In a strategic move destined to reshape the narrative of Nigeria’s brewing industry, a formidable force has emerged at the forefront of innovation and communication, bringing with her a wealth of expertise and a vision set to redefine the brand’s market presence, and this person is no other than Sandra Amachree.

Stepping into the dynamic world of Nigeria Breweries Plc, Sandra Amachree assumes the pivotal role of Head of Marketing Communication positioning herself as the driving force behind the brand’s new era in marketing communication.

Appointed in February 2023, Sandra has been at the forefront of the industry driving innovative brand communication initiatives across the entire portfolio of 21+ NB brands at Nigeria Breweries Plc and also overseeing media excellence management for two West African countries within the HEINEKEN International Group through her extensive experience in brand management and commercial excellence.

Prior to her recent promotion as the Head of Marketing Communication, Amachree served as the Senior Manager of Media, Brand PR and Sponsorships at Nigeria Breweries from March 2021 to April 2023 where she led the creation of meaningful narratives for each brand within the OpCo Brands Portfolio and managed sponsorship acquisitions.

As part of her achievements in the industry, Sandra has been most instrumental in re-shaping the media capabilities of the Africa Middle East and Eastern Europe (AMEE) region in raising the floor and the ceiling with the successful launch and roll-out of the AMEE media hub, providing media excellence practices for other West African OpCo’s in HEINEKEN. She drove the implementation of the first marketing mix modelling study in the AMEE region with the key objective to fully optimize media investments as a critical driver of business success while delivering positive ROI on media investment in line with HEINEKEN’s media principles and agenda to transform brand building.

Under her stewardship, she oversaw the merging of Media, Brand PR and Sponsorships under one umbrella of Marketing Communications. Next to this, she transformed the role of Brand PR in the marketing mix with a key focus on impactful brand storytelling, increasing brand awareness and ensuring year on year Share of Voice growth, as one of the growth engines for brand power. This has been delivered through her passion for working and winning with teams.

With the above notwithstanding, Sandra served as Brand PR & Sponsorships Manager for Nigerian Breweries Plc in the year October 2018 to March 2021 where she performed critical functions to the growth of the brand which included embedding the new Brand PR Unit as a critical part of the marketing communications agenda for all NB Brands, led PR communications messaging of the 2019 UCL Trophy Tour to Nigeria as part of the Heineken Sponsorship Campaign. The campaign introduced was a platform for football fans across Nigeria to get closer to the prestigious UEFA Champions League trophy, often regarded as one of the most coveted sports silverware.

Aside the aforementioned, she developed marketing/brand engagement storytelling platforms, drove the creative development of NB brand PR strategy across the full Portfolio of NB Brands, enhanced ways to communicate with industry partners, media, customers and retailers externally and also Implemented and managed a marketing communications plan model into the brand communication plans.

Sandra has also had a successful cross-functional career working in other functions like Sales and Human Resources, which has equipped her with the wealth of knowledge and expertise required to lead business transformation agendas, drive business success through innovation, collaboration, and a results-oriented approach.

Having held a position as the HR Business Partner – Support Functions, she successfully executed and implemented the NB Plc career path framework for the logistics division. Amachree also implemented measures to enhance employee engagement, foster company culture, and uphold core values.

Among her achievements while in HR, Sandra supported HEINEKEN South Africa to become a full-fledged OpCo with the successful implementation of Project SWORDFISH in 2016. During this time, she managed the successful people separation from the HEINEKEN-Diageo joint venture (BRANDHOUSE) and setup of the new organization, recruiting key positions and establishing end-to-end Human Resources capabilities in building the foundation of a future-fit organization.

During her service as Nigerian Breweries Plc’s Senior Manager, Media, Brand PR & Sponsorships, Sandra Amachree emerged as the Outstanding Public Affairs Professional at Lagos NIPR Award ceremony which took place on Friday, December 2, 2022, at D’Podium Event Centre, Ikeja, Lagos.

Sandra was also awarded the Outstanding Brands and Media Personality of the Decade by the Marketing Edge Awards.

In a recent summit held, she was the moderator of the Nigerian Breweries Plc See Her Empowered Conference themed “Balancing Professional & Personal Life” 2023, where she spoke about the right balance between work and personal life for professional development.

Dedicated to the development of Marketing in Nigeria, its intersection with business growth and its positive impact on society, Sandra served as the first female Chairperson of the Lagos Mainland Chapter of the NIMN, and continues to serve as a Council Member of the institute.

In terms of her educational background, Amachree holds a B.Sc. degree in Computer Science and is a distinguished alumnus of the Lagos Business School, Pan Atlantic University, Nigeria. Moreover, she completed a special Executive MBA course at the IESE Business School, University of Navarra, Barcelona. She has also obtained her Master of Business Administration from Pan Atlantic University.

In her leisure time, Amachree enjoys playing lawn tennis and golf.

By: Diella Teku and Eunice Dziedzorm Dzah/ Marketingworld Magazine