Return of the Mac – celebrating his success at this year’s Lewisham Awards!

On Sunday 2^nd June the Auckland hospitality sector gathered at the Viaduct Events Centre to celebrate this year’s Lewisham Awards, and amongst the city’s finest was Craig ‘Mac’ Mackenzie, a Beer and Cider Ambassador for Coca-Cola Europacific Partners New Zealand (CCEP).

Mac, as he is fondly known, won the Outstanding Sales Experience Award this year, his third Lewisham Award and says, “I’d always seen the awards sitting in pride of place at the best bars and restaurants, and of course I always wanted one. As a bartender I wanted one, as a venue manager I wanted one; I guess I'm making up for missing out then by getting three now!”.

Originally joining CCEP in 2013 as part of the Coffee team, Mac left CCEP to join the Beer industry to enhance his knowledge, build his skills and add experience before rejoining the business again a few years later. This year he celebrates his fifth consecutive year at CCEP, a milestone he is looking forward to celebrating at CCEP’s Long Service Awards later in the year.

When asked what inspires him every day, Mac is emphatic, “People! I love finding ways to collaborate with people and get a lot of my energy out of finding solutions and getting that smile of gratitude out of people. Simple as that”.

“I love educating people about beer and passing on my knowledge around hospitality and execution. I am also blessed to have such a multi-faceted role. Day to day I might be involved in everything from creating and executing internal Sales Team training, large trade expo activations, or venue beer events and training, through to new business exploratories, creating proposals and contract negotiations. It's the best of everything!”.

With a three-strike winning streak Mac has a few wise words for those who are new and coming into the industry, “you’re only as good as your last interaction with a customer so make every interaction count - you never know who they know, what their influence is, or if you may end up dealing with them again, so always put your best foot forward”, he said.

*The Lewisham Awards are named after Richard Lewisham who was a pioneer of the Auckland Hospitality scene and encourages excellence in the city’s hospitality sector.