Chapel Down CEO Andrew Carter has resigned as the UK’s biggest wine maker revealed its half-year profit had plunged 22%.
Profits fell to £3.41m from £4.78m last year. Net sales were also down 11% to £7.12m, however, the wine brand has said these figures were expected due to factors including the greater weighting of still wines due to the strong 2023 harvest.
Carter, who will become CEO at brewery Timothy Taylor in 2025, said that Chapel Down has seen “operational progress with robust trading” in one-trade, export and direct-to-consumer channels, but added that its half-year results have been offset by “challenges in the off-trade”.
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Chapel Down chair Martin Glenn wished Carter luck, and praised the “several strategic” milestones the business has achieved under his leadership.
Glenn added: “I and the board have enjoyed wroking with Andrew immensely and wish him every success in his new role leading another iconic British brand. Chapel Down is the market leader in the English wine industry which continues to enjoy exceptional growth, and the team is highly motivated to execute the growth strategy and drive the continued development of the world’s newest global wine region from the front.”
The board added that it is now beginning its search for a new CEO, with Carter to remain at the helm of the business until the first half of 2025.
Chapel Down is understood to be mulling a sale to fund new vineyards and a new purpose-built winery, which it wants to be operational by 2026.
