As one of the world’s most recognised heritage brands, Twinings has a 300-year legacy of bringing quality tea to market. In Australia, the brand operates as a lean, high-performing team - balancing global brand direction with local market execution.
Twinings Australia operates with significant autonomy within the global structure, allowing for tailored strategies that align with local market needs. This autonomy fosters innovation and agility in addressing regional challenges while staying true to its global heritage.
Over time, Twinings faced a familiar challenge for mid-sized FMCG organisations: maintaining long-term growth while continuously evolving its talent to meet the expectations of a fast-paced, competitive retail environment.
We began working with Twinings more than a decade ago, and what started as support for a few mid-level commercial roles developed into a long-term partnership across Sales, Marketing, and Supply Chain. Through ongoing collaboration, we’ve helped them build a leadership structure that is both strategic and future focused.
THE CHALLENGE:
Twinings needed to grow their team with people who could:
- Bring Tier 1 FMCG experience while adapting to a leaner, fast-moving environment.
- Work strategically, while remaining hands-on and agile in execution.
- Align with a high-performance culture, where depth, flexibility, and cultural fit were as important as technical skill.
- Create bench strength for the future - hiring leaders who could grow into more senior roles over time.
The challenge was less about high-volume recruitment and more about getting the right people in the right seats, with the right mindset to make a lasting impact.
Twinings also needed support attracting talent into roles that may not have seemed exciting on paper but had significant scope for influence, stretch, and future progression.
OUR APPROACH:
Through years of partnership, we developed a strong understanding of Twinings’ business, team dynamics, and the traits of people who succeed there.
Our recruitment approach focused on:
- Understanding the evolution of the team and leadership priorities
Many hires were made during periods of business change or in anticipation of future needs, so we worked closely with Twinings’ leadership team to align role design with business strategy.
- Proactive candidate engagement
We engaged candidates who might not have applied based on title alone, helping them see the broader opportunity - how they could add value, grow, and shape the brand.
- Long-term fit over short-term fix
We prioritised long-term impact, identifying people with the capability to step into more senior roles and contribute to the leadership pipeline over time. Twinings also benefits from bespoke international leadership development programs that bring global leaders together to build cross-cultural capabilities and foster innovation. These initiatives focus on authentic leadership, entrepreneurialism, and adaptability-key traits for thriving in its high-performance culture.
- Functionally integrated recruitment
Over the years, we’ve worked across Sales, Marketing, Category, and Supply Chain, often recruiting individuals who worked cross-functionally or progressed into broader leadership roles.
RESULTS:
The team successfully recruited top talent across Marketing, Sales, and Supply Chain, with many placements progressing into senior leadership roles.
Key appointments include:
- Marketing Director (UK) – originally placed as a Marketing Manager
- Managing Director (Australia) – originally placed as a Sales Director
- International Director, Business Managers, Category Heads, Procurement and Demand Planning leads
We helped shape a team of commercial leaders with strong cross-functional capability - many of whom have delivered measurable growth and taken the business into its next phase.
Twinings Australia’s autonomy within its global structure has also allowed these leaders to implement tailored strategies that address local market needs while aligning with global priorities.
The partnership continues to evolve - with regular touchpoints, strategic workforce discussions, and a shared understanding of what success looks like in the Twinings environment.
Looking to hire top talent? Reach out to the team below.