Duvel USA, Boulevard Brewing Company, and Brewery Ommegang today announced Seraf De Smedt will take over as president of the U.S. organization effective immediately. De Smedt has served as the chief finance and administration officer for Duvel Moortgat since December 2013. With the transition to his new role, he will work closely with the U.S.-based leadership team while continuing to oversee the global finance team for Duvel Moortgat. John McDonald, founder of Boulevard Brewing Company, who stepped in as interim president for Duvel USA late January, will return to retirement with this transition.

“Since Boulevard became part of the Duvel Moortgat family of breweries in late 2013, Seraf has been an instrumental leader for our company,” said McDonald. “He has always worked closely with our U.S. operations, so having him take over the reins as president gives me great confidence that we are set up for a successful future. Seraf’s leadership style is collaborative and thoughtful. Combined with his finger on the pulse of the company from a global perspective, I retire knowing this next chapter for our company will be led exceptionally.”

De Smedt will split his time between Belgium and the United States. The U.S. leadership team will oversee daily operations for the U.S. breweries and national sales team. Leading those duties are company veterans Bobby Dykstra, executive vice president of sales and marketing; Rick DeBar, general manager of Brewery Ommegang; Steven Pauwels, brewmaster of Boulevard; Dali Grabar, director of engineering for Boulevard; Julie Weeks, vice president of communications and culture; and newcomer Stephanie Walker, director of human resources.

“The U.S. market has been a great passion of mine since joining Duvel Moortgat,” said De Smedt. “I’m excited to have the opportunity to work with my U.S. colleagues more closely. The beer and alcoholic beverage industries have never been more complex, which provides all of us the task of balancing our innovation and staying true to our heritage beers. I look forward to the adventures ahead and want to wholeheartedly thank John for the crucial role he played these past months. He leaves big shoes to fill, so I count on the entire leadership team to do so with me.”

Prior to joining Duvel Moortgat, De Smedt served as CFO at Lineas, a Belgian rail freight company (2009-2013), and as associate principal at McKinsey & Company, a consultancy (2001-2009). He started his career as a senior auditor at PwC, an auditing firm (1996-1999). De Smedt holds an Applied Economics degree from the Catholic University of Leuven (KUL, 1996), as well as a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Chicago (Booth School of Business, 2001).

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About Duvel Moortgat

Duvel Moortgat is a fourth-generation, family-owned craft brewery based in Puurs-Sint-Amands, Belgium. The company owns and operates ten breweries in the United States and Europe, including Boulevard Brewing Co. in Kansas City, MO, Brewery Ommegang in Cooperstown, NY and Firestone Walker Brewing Co. in Paso Robles, CA; Duvel, Brasserie d’Achouffe, Liefmans and De Koninck in Belgium; Brouwerij ‘t IJ in the Netherlands; Birrificio del Ducato in Italy; and Bernard Brewery in the Czech Republic. For more information, visit www.boulevard.com, www.ommegang.com, and www.duvel.com.

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