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Kentucky Today

By Tom Latek

Louisville-based Brown-Forman Corporation, whose products include Woodford Reserve Bourbon and Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey, announced a series of changes on Tuesday, which includes the layoff of hundreds of employees around the world.

Other provisions of what the company calls “strategic initiatives” include restructuring the executive leadership team and closing the Brown-Forman Cooperage, which makes their bourbon barrels in Louisville.

To enhance operational efficiency and agility, Brown‑Forman says it has made the difficult decision to reduce its global workforce by approximately 12 percent of its 5,400 employees worldwide. The company will provide support to departing employees with comprehensive transition agreements that include severance, outplacement services, and other benefits to help them through this career change.

The Brown‑Forman Cooperage will be shuttered by April 25, 2025. This closure, which will impact approximately 210 hourly and salaried employees, is part of the overall 12 percent workforce reduction. The company will offer severance, outplacement services, and benefits to those workers as well, consistent with their terms of employment.

Moving forward, Brown‑Forman will source barrels from an external supplier to ensure a steady supply of the same high-quality barrels at a competitive price.

According to Brown-Forman, they have restructured the executive leadership team to accelerate growth across its brands, business, and workforce. This includes consolidating and streamlining its commercial structure to leverage greater synergies and effectiveness in its markets.

Collectively, these actions are projected to deliver approximately $70 to $80 million in annualized cost savings, a portion of which is expected to be reinvested to accelerate growth. In addition, the company will receive more than $30 million in proceeds in connection with the sale of the cooperage assets. The company expects to incur approximately $60 to $70 million in aggregate charges for severance and related costs associated with the workforce reduction and cooperage closing.

“I want to express my sincere gratitude to our employees, particularly those impacted by these changes, for their dedication and contributions to Brown‑Forman,” said Lawson Whiting, President & Chief Executive Officer. “We are committed to supporting them through this transition and are confident that these strategic initiatives will ensure the company endures for generations to come.”

2025 marks Brown-Forman’s 155^th year in business.