UK trade association Wines of Great Britain has lined up its next CEO, with Nicola Bates set to start in the role later this year.
The organisation, which represents wine producers in England and Wales, confirmed that Bates will transition from her current role with alcohol industry-funded regulator The Portman Group. She joined Portman in late 2018 as director of external affairs before assuming her current position of strategy & external affairs director.
Bates starts with WineGB at the end of October, replacing Simon Thorpe, who stood down after almost three years as CEO in June.
“The WineGB board were looking for a specific set of skills and experience that are required to deliver success for the organisation and industry as we enter a new phase of maturity,” said chair Sam Linter. “During an extensive recruitment process, Nicola demonstrated the experience and diverse skillset required to run a growing trade association with a rapidly increasing external focus.”
Bates stood as a candidate for the Conservative party in the UK’s 2010 General Election, coming second to then-Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg in the Sheffield Hallam constituency. She is not the only alcohol trade association head with a political history: Emma McClarkin, the CEO of the British Beer & Pub Association, was a Member of the European Parliament for the Conservatives for ten years before joining the brewing and on-premise organisation in 2019.
