Take Five - Summer 2026

The Keeper Magazine meets five of the 2026 intake of Keepers of the Quaich as they arrive for the Spring Banquet.

Ting-Ting Hsu

Head of Sales, William Grant & Sons Taiwan

Ting-Ting was born in Taipei, Taiwan and has a background in medical diagnosis and health science, having worked in the medical, automotive and banking sectors.

A chance meeting with a former boss led her to join William Grant & Sons in 2006.

“I started as Brand Manager for Grants, then as Trade Marketing Manager, looking at sales strategies in the Taiwan region.

“In 2008, I was relocated to Shanghai, China for 18 months as Marketing Manager across all brands.”

Ting-Ting was back in China in 2019 for four years, just as Covid-19 broke.

“It was a very challenging time, “she remembers. “However, thanks to my leader Jeff Chau, and the whole team, we managed well.”

Since moving back to Taiwan, Ting-Ting has been Head of Sales.

“Taiwan is a strong market for Scotch. The market here is very sophisticated. Taiwanese people like to know the story behind the whisky and Scotch Whisky has such a story. We sell a lot of single malts and the collecting market is buoyant.

“I’ve been aware of the Society since 2015, when two team members were made Keepers. I have been to a banquet at the castle before, but this time is special.”

Lindsay McGarvie

 Corporate Affairs Director, Edrington 

“This is the first time I’ve been interviewed by a magazine,” confesses Lindsay McGarvie. The former journalist cut his teeth in the 1990s as a reporter on the Daily Mail, working his way up to become Political Editor of the Sunday Mail in 1999.

In 2005, Lindsay could see journalism was changing, so he set up communications agency MMM. Building on his political nouse, Lindsay soon became known for helping businesses with crisis management and reputational issues.

“In 2008, Diageo became a client, and as a whisky lover, it was a pleasure to work with some great people and iconic brands.”

In 2012, MMM merged with 3X1, another communications agency, and Lindsay continued to work alongside the whisky industry including legends like Campbell Evans at the Scotch Whisky Association.

In 2018, the opportunity arose to work in-house at Edrington as Corporate Affairs Director.

“It was a tough decision to leave the agency I started and loved,” recalls Lindsay, “but I really wanted to work at Edrington. The culture and values of the Robertson Sisters (who set up the Robertson Trust, principal shareholders in Edrington), runs through the DNA of the company and I was really attracted to that and our amazing brands like The Macallan, Highland Park and The Glenrothes.

“I’ve been lucky enough to attend a Keepers banquet before, so I was very pleased when our CEO Scott McCroskie proposed me and I’m proud to be a part of a Society that does so much to promote our industry globally.”

Jacqui Seargeant

Global Heritage Manager, Bacardi

Jacqui was brought up near Middlesbrough in the north east of England, but moved to Scotland to study History at the University of Glasgow and never left. She spent a year working in the university’s brewing archive to gain experience before embarking on the one-year post graduate archive training course.

In 1998, Bacardi bought the Dewar’s and Bombay brands and began setting up a visitor centre – Dewar’s Aberfeldy Distillery.

“I was offered a one-year contract in 1999,” remembers Jacqui, “to go through all the boxes of archives that had been collected over the years. At that time, I was based in the Marketing team, and my boss recognised a real need for a full-time archivist to help tell the story of the brand. So here I am, 27 years later.”

“‘It’s never too early to start an archive, we are currently in the process of setting up an archive for Teeling Irish Whiskey in Dublin,” says Jacqui.

Bacardi has archives in Miami, northern France (for Bénédictine, Noilly Prat and Otard ), Glasgow (for Dewar’s and the single malts), and northern Italy (for Martini).

“Tommy Dewar, one of the founders of Dewar’s whisky, was very keen to capitalise on branded items, from toothpicks to playing cards, and we have many examples from the last century. We even have copies of The Keeper magazine and correspondence relating to banquets. It’s an honour to become a Keeper, and it’s funny to think that I will now become part of the archive.”

Hina Nagarajan

President, Diageo Africa

Hina Nagarajan joined Diageo in 2018, after a busy career working with multinationals Nestlé and Reckitt.

The lure of working with iconic brands such as Johnnie Walker, Lagavulin, Oban sealed the deal for her, and she was appointed Managing Director for Africa regional markets (around 37 countries).

“My father was a consumer of Johnnie Walker Black,” she remembers. “I had grown up with these brands, and now I had the opportunity to work with them.”

Hina moved from her Africa role in 2021 to return home to India, where she became President of Diageo India.

“India is still the largest whisky market in the world by volume,” she says, “but we hadn’t taken advantage of the premiumisation of the brands.”

“I launched a new strategy in India, and we saw 16 per cent growth over the four years I was there. In fact, some of our premium brands rose by 20 per cent. This led to the share price tripling and Johnnie Walker establishing itself as the market leader in Scotch in India. My proudest moment was when India became one of the top markets in the world for Johnnie Walker.”

In 2025, she was back in Africa, this time as President of Diageo Africa, where she is responsible for the entire continent.

“When I was working with the regional markets, Scotch was a nascent presence. We laid the groundwork in 2018 and are now seeing the fruits of our labours.”

One such initiative has been Afro Exchange, a platform that promotes African musicians across different countries within Africa aligned with the Keep Walking philosophy of Johnnie Walker

“I became aware of the Keepers of the Quaich three years ago, when two members of my India team were inducted. It is an absolute honour to become part of the Society, and I will ensure that future generations continue to love, discuss and consume Scotch brands such as Johnnie Walker.”

Chennarong (Jan) Bhumichitr

 MD, Majestic Management and Consulting, Thailand 

Jan studied design in Bangkok, Thailand, his homeland, and completed a Master’s in London. It was there that he started working as a bartender to supplement his income, before returning to Bangkok in 2009.

“At that time,” Jan remembers, “not many people in Thailand had in-depth knowledge or were passionate about Scotch Whisky. I became a Thai mentor for the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) for eight years, mentoring many people through its academy around Thailand.”

In 2016, Jan saw an opportunity to launch his own luxury bar consultancy – Majestic Management and Consulting.

“We support brands that have a new product to promote at an event,” he says. “We can supply catering and bar staff and inspire their clients by creating unique cocktails. We work closely with Pernod Ricard and, in particular, Chivas Brothers.”

Jan also has three cocktail bars in Bangkok: two speakeasy bars; #Findthelockerroom, The Photobooth and Mahaniyom Cocktail Bar, which is number 19 on the World’s 50 Best Bars 2023 list.

“In 2022, I noticed that Chakrit ‘Max’ Benedetti had become the first Keeper inducted from Thailand, so I got to thinking about the Society. I never dreamed that one day I would also become a Keeper of the Quaich. It is a proud moment for me.”