Black Sheep Brewery appoints new chairman

North Yorkshire-based Black Sheep Brewery has appointed Andy Slee as its new chairman who will take over from founder Paul Theakston this month.

Slee will start his new role this month (September), taking over from founder and current chairman, Paul Theakston, who will remain on the board as a non-executive director.

With over 30 years’ experience in the beer and pub industry, Slee, 52, has been a non-executive director at Black Sheep since 2016.

He has previously worked with brands such as Coca Cola and was most recently external affairs and central operations director at Punch Taverns.

Slee will work alongside managing director Rob Theakston as well as supporting the executive team.

Commenting on his new role, Slee said: “I am delighted to have been appointed as chairman of Black Sheep Brewery, which is a great privilege to oversee one of the Yorkshire’s iconic institutions. I hope to draw on my extensive experience from working with a number of large brands within the industry and build this into the future of Black Sheep.”

“It will be a great honour to work with Rob and the rest of the Board, including Paul whose continued involvement will be great asset to the company. He is the very DNA of Black Sheep and our collective experience, together with his wise guidance and counsel, will be important to the future success of Black Sheep Brewery.”

Paul Theakston added: “Andy possesses extensive industry experience working with large corporations and breweries, which will support the Board and management team immensely. I am looking forward to working with him and the Board, as we continue to develop the Black Sheep brand.”

Black Sheep Brewery, based in Masham, was founded in 1992 by Paul Theakston, himself part of a beer dynasty that have been brewing in the area for six generations.