Beth Marker
About Beth Marker
Beth A. Marker, age 64, is Senior Vice President, Retail Operations at Heritage Distilling Holding Company, Inc. (NASDAQ: CASK), serving in this role since February 2024 after joining the company in 2017 to launch its Roslyn, WA location . She brings decades of field sales, project management, and marketing experience, with prior executive roles at Revlon and Lancôme, product development at Nordstrom, and store management at Safeway; she holds a BS in Fine Arts Administration from Butler University . The company’s proxy materials do not disclose TSR, revenue growth, or EBITDA growth metrics tied specifically to Marker's performance or pay .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heritage Distilling Holding Company, Inc. | Senior Vice President, Retail Operations | Feb 2024–present | Leads Retail Realignment Project to drive robust, cost-effective growth across retail channels . |
| Heritage Distilling Holding Company, Inc. | Retail leader (launched Roslyn, WA) | 2017–Feb 2024 | Launched Roslyn location; progressed to SVP role on back of retail growth initiatives . |
| Revlon | Executive roles (cosmetics/fragrance) | Not disclosed | National product/brand launches; field sales and marketing leadership experience . |
| Lancôme | Executive roles (cosmetics/fragrance) | Not disclosed | National product/brand launches; field sales and marketing leadership experience . |
| Nordstrom | Product Development | Not disclosed | Product development experience supporting consumer retail execution . |
| Safeway | Store Management | Not disclosed | Retail operations, product promotion, diversity, and retail management experience . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Various local non-profits | Director | Not disclosed | Community engagement and governance exposure . |
Fixed Compensation
Multi-year compensation (NEO table):
| Metric (USD) | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Base Salary | $84,917 | $175,639 |
| Bonus | — | — |
| Stock Awards (Grant-Date Fair Value) | — | $6,000 |
| Option Awards | — | — |
| Non-Equity Incentive Comp | — | — |
| All Other Compensation | — | — |
| Total | $84,917 | $181,639 |
| Deferred Compensation Paid in 2025 (for prior periods) | $4,000 | $4,000 |
Notes:
- No target or actual cash bonus disclosed for 2023–2024; non-equity incentive compensation not reported .
- $4,000 of deferred compensation was paid in 2025 to Marker for 2023/2024 per footnote (not included in 2024 “All Other Compensation”) .
Performance Compensation
- No performance-based cash plan or PSU metrics (e.g., revenue/EBITDA/TSR) are disclosed for Marker; 2024 NEOs show no non-equity incentive payouts .
Equity awards detail:
| Award | Grant Date | Type | Shares/Units | Grant-Date FV (USD) | Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting / Triggers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 RSU | 6/5/2024 | RSU | 1,500 | $6,000 | None (time/liquidity triggers) | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | Double trigger: service + liquidity event (e.g., change of control; IPO lock-up expiry; sale of brand/sub; third-party valuation ≥$200M); settlement only when both triggers met . |
Change-in-control equity treatment (plan-level):
- If awards are assumed/replaced in a “sale event,” and the holder experiences a qualifying termination (without cause, death/disability, or resignation for good reason) within 24 months post-event, awards vest/are deemed earned in full (at least target for performance awards) .
- If awards are not assumed/replaced, options may be cashed out if in-the-money; time-based RSUs vest and settle; performance awards canceled for cash based on target or trend through sale event .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Ownership (Common) | May 30, 2025 | Jul 23, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficially Owned Shares | 106,059 | 106,059 |
| Ownership % of Class | <1% | <1% |
| Options Exercisable within 60 Days | 184 | Not disclosed |
| Unvested RSUs Outstanding (separate from beneficial count) | 1,500 as of 12/31/2024 | 1,500 as of 12/31/2024 |
Policies and alignment:
- Hedging, short sales, options, margin, and pledging of company stock by directors/officers/employees are prohibited by the Insider Trading Policy (i.e., no hedging/pledging allowed) .
- Company-wide equity plan: 2024 Plan initially 5,000,000 shares; Board later sought to increase to 35,000,000 shares (special meeting proposal), which could enable larger future grants and increase equity-based pay opportunities (subject to stockholder approval and share availability) .
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Employment Start (Company) | Joined Heritage in 2017 . |
| Current Role Start | SVP, Retail Operations since February 2024 . |
| Contract Term/Expiration | Not disclosed in proxy/8-K filings . |
| Severance (Cash) | Not disclosed; no individual employment agreement terms provided in proxies . |
| Equity on Change-of-Control | Plan-level treatment: double-trigger vesting if assumed and terminated within 24 months; if not assumed, time-based RSUs vest at sale event (see above) . |
| Clawback | Awards subject to any company recoupment/clawback policies and applicable listing standards/law . |
| Non-Compete/Non-Solicit | Plan allows forfeiture/disgorgement for breaches of noncompetition/non-solicitation/confidentiality and similar obligations tied to awards . |
| Ownership Guidelines | Not disclosed . |
| Hedging/Pledging | Prohibited under Insider Trading Policy . |
Performance & Track Record
- Initiatives: Marker initiated the Retail Realignment Project to improve growth and cost efficiency across retail channels in her SVP role .
- No stock performance, TSR, or operational KPI disclosures tied to Marker’s tenure are provided in the referenced filings .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Mix and trend: Year-over-year, base salary rose from $84,917 (2023) to $175,639 (2024) alongside a modest RSU grant ($6,000), with no cash bonus or non-equity incentive payouts disclosed; this indicates a shift toward higher fixed pay with limited at-risk equity for 2024 .
- Incentive design: RSUs lack explicit operational or market performance metrics; vesting is predominantly service/liquidity-trigger-based, which provides retention but weaker pay-for-performance linkage compared to PSUs .
- Future equity capacity: The Board’s proposal to expand the 2024 Plan to 35,000,000 shares increases capacity for future equity awards, potentially altering the cash/equity mix and increasing retention levers across executives (subject to stockholder approval and availability) .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Current structure emphasizes fixed cash with small RSU exposure; absence of disclosed performance metrics or bonus plan weakens direct pay-for-performance alignment for Marker in 2024 .
- Retention risk: With only 1,500 unvested RSUs and minimal options (184 exercisable as of May 30, 2025), lock-in appears modest; retention will rely on role scope, future equity grants under the expanded plan, and career progression .
- Insider selling pressure: Near-term pressure from Marker's holdings seems low given sub-1% ownership and small award/option balances; hedging/pledging prohibitions further limit liquidity tactics .
- Change-of-control sensitivity: Plan-level double-trigger protection and sale-event vesting could accelerate equity in a transaction, modestly increasing executive-level incentives around strategic outcomes without significant dilution from Marker’s individual grants .