Independent brewery Vocation has announced three senior appointments, as it looks to capitalise on strong growth in grocery and the on-trade.
Andrew Winning, Greg Levens and Steve Pickles have all been selected for roles at the West Yorkshire business.
Winning has joined as non-executive chair following an extensive career across the brewing, drinks and hospitality industries at businesses including Bass and Marston’s.
Levens will start at Vocation in October as off-trade national account controller, bringing more than 20 years’ industry experience, including roles with BrewDog, Daniel Thwaites and Carlsberg Marston. He will take the place of Nick Wagstaff, who was instrumental for three years in building strong and collaborative customer relationships and strengthening Vocation’s off-trade presence and rate of sale.
Also in October, Pickles will also join as head of on-trade sales, having spent more than 20 years in the on-trade, including roles with Molson Coors and Matthew Clark. He will replace John Morrissey, who held the head of on-trade sales position for three years, during which time he helped elevate Vocation’s profile and strengthen its presence in pubs, bars and the like.
The brewery was “really pleased to welcome Andrew, Greg and Steve to the team”, said John Hickling, Vocation founder & non-executive director. “Between them, they bring a vast amount of experience across brewing, drinks, hospitality and the on and off-trades, which will be invaluable as we build on the momentum we’re seeing and continue to focus on long-term, scalable growth.”
The business continued “to invest in the brewery, our people and our brands, while remaining focused on what has always been at the heart of Vocation: brewing bold, flavourful beers that are accessible to more people,” Hickling added.
The appointments follow recent changes to Vocation’s senior leadership team. Gail Lumsden, who joined the board in 2021, has stepped down as CEO & executive chair, after helping to strengthen innovation, improve operational processes and create the foundations for sustained, value-driven growth.
John Brooks, Vocation chief financial officer, has taken on the role of interim CEO alongside his existing responsibilities while the board seeks a permanent CEO.
“Leadership teams naturally change as businesses grow and develop,” Hickling said. “We have a strong leadership team in place and have attracted highly experienced people to Vocation as we continue to build for our next phase of growth.”
Vocation’s value sales in grocery are up 2.9% on a 2.4% rise in volumes, significantly outperforming the wider craft beer market, which is down 9.6% and 12.5% in value and volumes respectively [NIQ 52 w/e 5 September 2026]. In the on-trade, the business – which has sites in Hebden Bridge, Halifax and Sheffield – has registered double-digit volume sales growth.
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