Seán Cairns

Seán Cairns is President of Global Rigid Paper Packaging (RPC) at Sonoco, overseeing operations across North and South America, Europe and Asia since April 2022. A respected industry leader, he has been instrumental in driving growth, innovation and sustainability, positioning Sonoco as a global market leader.

Since joining Sonoco in 2008 to lead the European RPC business, Cairns has led four major acquisitions that expanded Sonoco’s sustainable packaging capabilities. Under his leadership, the company achieved 60% organic growth by delivering innovative, high-performance packaging solutions. Now, he is bringing these advancements to a global scale, driving strong, single-digit growth by expanding into new markets and geographies.

With over 30 years in packaging, his expertise is rooted in a strong technical foundation as a former Merchant Marine. He holds a mechanical engineering degree from the University of Wales College, Cardiff, an Executive MBA from Manchester Business School and is a Fellow of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers.