Kingsland Drinks has announced its managing director Ed Baker is to step down.
Baker was to quit the Manchester-based wine and spirits company after more than a decade to “take on a new leadership role outside of the drinks sector”, Kingsland Drinks said.
Having joined in 2013 as finance director, Baker was promoted to the role of MD in 2019. During his tenure, Baker had overseen “an incredible pipeline of investment in the company’s infrastructure and capabilities”, Kingsland Drinks said.
Under his guidance, the company had “increased its focus on spirits and no and low alcohol creation and increased its capacity to pack wines and spirits in new and emerging formats”, it said.
It also reinstated its on-site winery and expanded its NPD capabilities with a new laboratory.
In 2021, Kingsland transitioned to an ‘employee-owned’ model, a move that Baker helped facilitate to enable its staff “to have a say in how the company is run”.
“Ed has been an integral part of our company since the day he joined,” said Kingsland chairman Andy Sagar. “We’ll miss him greatly, but he leaves a strong business that has sustainable investment in people and capabilities that will continue to drive our business forward.”
Baker added: “Although I am leaving the drinks industry for a new chapter in my career, I do so confident that investment in our team, business model and strategic direction in recent years has created a strong and competitive business.”
Baker’s replacement is yet to be announced by Kingsland Drinks. They will work alongside Andy Henderson, Mark Riley and Simon Shelbourn, who have joined the company as, respectively, operations director, commercial director and chief financial officer in recent years.
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