Suffolk brewer appoints new boss

Suffolk brewery St Peter’s has appointed a new managing director.

John Hadingham, previously of Aspall Cyder, Debenham, takes over the reins at the Bungay-based brewer following the installation of a new state-of-the-art bottling line.

With sales brewery soaring from a string of new retail and export contracts, his focus will be sales strategy and new product development as the brand looks to expand, the firm said.

“I am very excited to be joining St Peter’s Brewery as MD at a time when the brand is expanding production and looking to develop its range,” he said. “My background is in brand development, sales and team development and I intend to use my expertise to make St Peter’s Brewery one of the major players in brewing and build on the excellent success it has already achieved in the on and off-trade.”

Owner John Murphy said he brought a “wealth of experience and skills” that were “a perfect fit”.

“We have a great brand, a strong portfolio of products and the team and equipment to increase our production. We have some catching-up to do in certain marketing areas, but I believe John is fully up to the challenge,” he said.

John comes from an agricultural background, having started out working for his own family business close to the brewery. He then moved into retail and later into a number of national sales roles before joining Aspall Cyder, where he was responsible for sales, team development and branding in both the on and off-trades and enjoyed considerable success.

Former chief executive Steve Magnall stood down recently to join his wife in running a bakery business at Southwold.