Bart Watson Named President and Chief Executive Officer of the Brewers Association
When the calendar turns over to 2025 in a few weeks, the Brewers Association has announced the appointment of Bart Watson to President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the trade association. This comes on the news from July 2024 that Bob Pease, current President and CEO of the Brewers Association, would retire in early 2025 once his successor is hired and in place.
Watson has been with the Brewers Association since 2013 and is the current Vice President of Strategy and Membership after spending many years as the group’s Chief Economist. He is well known in the brewing industry and will attempt to use this leverage in maintaining and hopefully expanding the trade group. But it will not be an easy task at hand as sales of craft beer has remained flat at best over the past few years.
“Bart’s in-depth understanding of the craft beer industry and landscape and his decade-plus of experience within the Brewers Association makes him uniquely poised to step into the president and CEO role on day one with a strategic vision and plan,” said Leah Cheston, board chair. “The board of directors is excited for the next chapter and looks forward to working with Bart to chart the path forward for our members and our industry.”
The Brewers Association Board of Directors confirmed Watson’s selection at their December 12 board meeting in Atlanta after conducting a national recruitment process via executive search agency Kittleman & Associates. His start date as president and CEO will be January 6, 2025. Watson will succeed Bob Pease, who will retire from the organization on January 3.
In his new position leading the Brewers Association, Watson will address legislative and regulatory issues impacting independent craft breweries and producers, champion their voice in the media and across industries, oversee the development of events and resources to benefit member businesses and support the board’s ongoing development as a strategic governing body.
Prior to joining the Brewers Association in 2013, Watson was a visiting assistant professor at the University of Iowa Department of Political Science, a postdoctoral research fellow at the Berkeley Roundtable on the international economy, and a University of California Berkeley School of Public Health lecturer. He is a graduate of Stanford University and holds master’s and PhD degrees in political science from the University of California, Berkeley.
“I am honored to be chosen to lead the Brewers Association, and I look forward to building on the strong foundation laid by the leaders before me,” said Watson. “Craft has been going through a difficult period and I am committed to finding ways to help our members navigate those challenges. Our members are incredibly innovative and adaptable entrepreneurs, and I’m ready to work with them and for them to support their businesses and bring excitement back to the category.”
Time will tell how Watson’s leadership will bring together craft brewers and see a marketplace that will offer a bit more hope than the industry is currently experiencing.
About The Author
DJ
D.J. is a Portland, Oregon based writer that spent his formative years in the Midwest. With over 25 years under his belt of drinking beer at festivals across America and the world, he has developed a strong appreciation and understanding of craft beer and the industry that surrounds it. He can be found in any of the great breweries or beer bars that make Portland the best beer city in the world. His writing can also be found in the archives of Northwest Brewing News and can be followed on Twitter and Instagram at @hopapalooza.