Hambledon Vineyard has announced Knight Frank wine consultant James Osborn as its new managing director.
Osborn will join the English sparkling winemaker in April.
In his role in the English wine consultancy team at Knight Frank, Osborn had been responsible for “building higher-margin, more valuable wine brands anchored to outstanding hospitality-led destinations”, Hambledon Vineyard said.
Prior to this he was a founding member of the Wine Garden of England, and managing director for Squerryes Wine Estate.
He is also non-executive director at Tillingham Wine Estate in East Sussex.
He would be “instrumental in leading Hambledon’s growth plans” in the coming years, according to Emma Fox, CEO of Hambledon co-owner Berry Bros & Rudd.
“We are delighted to announce the appointment of James to the team. He brings a wealth of expertise in the English sparkling wine sector,” Fox said.
Rob Symington, director of Hambledon’s other owner Symington Family Estates, added: “Developing the senior leadership team is an important part of our plan to grow Hambledon Vineyard. James is very experienced and we are thrilled to welcome him to the team.”
Osborn’s appointment comes a matter of months after Berry Bros & Rudd and Symington Family Estates completed a £22.3m deal to acquire Hambledon, which is Britain’s oldest commercial vineyard.
The 50/50 deal, announced in September 2023, was an “important mitigation against the risk of climate change”, management at the two firms said in a joint statement at the time.
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