Conference Speakers

Russell Bisset is the Founder of Northern Monk Brewery. With Scottish heritage and a Northern English upbringing, he launched the business from his parents’ cellar with £5K from his Edinburgh-based grandmother and a vision to create a brewery that is Fresh from the North. Today, Northern Monk is one of the fastest-growing independent breweries in the UK, recognised for its impact in the off-trade and beyond.

Alix is a Technical Sales Representative for Lallemand Brewing in the UK, with MSc degrees in Chemistry and Brewing & Distilling. Drawing on both academic training and real‑world brewing experience, she supports brewers with practical, innovative solutions and a passion for making better beer.

Lesley Ann Gray joined Kantar Worldpanel in 2018 as its Strategic lead for Scotland. With over 30 years’ experience in the Scottish food and drink industry she works across Scotland’s Food and Drink sector, collaborating with companies and brands of all sizes, in addition to retailers, the public sector and academics. She helps them to understand and decode shopper behaviour in order to grow.

Dan Kopman is a Professorial Lecturer at the Kogod School of Business at American University and a Senior Policy Advisor to the World Brewing Alliance. Dan began his career in brewing as a trainee brewer at Young & Co’s Brewery PLC in London in 1983. Dan is the Co-Founder and former CEO of The Saint Louis Brewery, LLC, brewer of Schlafly Beer, and former CEO of Clipper City Brewing, LP, brewer of Heavy Seas Beer. 
 
Dan was Chair of the US Brewers Association Committee that led the Federal Excise Tax reform effort in 2009 with the introduction of the Small Brewers Reinvestment and Expanding Workforce Act. In 2017, Dan helped negotiate a compromise bill, the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act. This Act was signed into law at the end of that year and made permanent in 2020, securing a graduated excise tax structure and tax savings of over 2 billion a year for beer, wine, and spirits. 

David Lee has hosted more than 500 events - more than 300 in-person and 200+ online. These have included policy conferences on a wide range of subjects, as well as election hustings, awards ceremonies, trade shows, and seminars. He has hosted the seminar stage at In-Drinks Glasgow and chaired the inaugural Scottish Distillers' Conference in autumn 2024. In 2025, he will chair the Distillers event again, as well as a new Whisky Conference.  
David has also presented more than 100 podcasts, and has a successful media training business.  

He has run his own company since 2009 and was previously a daily newspaper journalist for 20 years, latterly Senior Assistant Editor at The Scotsman.  
Away from work, he is an obsessive coastal rower, and an angry footballer of declining ability. He has four grown-up children and two border collies. 

Louise Maclean is the Business Development Director for Signature Pubs and Cold Town Beer, leading commercial growth, partnerships and brand development for the hospitality group.  With extensive experience in sales, marketing and operations, she has played a key role in expanding both brands while driving innovation and customer engagement. Louise is also a Director of the Scottish Hospitality Group, where she works alongside industry leaders to support collaboration, advocacy and positive change within the sector. Recognised as a respected voice in hospitality, she regularly appears as a BBC spokesperson on industry matters, providing insight on trends, challenges and consumer behaviour. She is passionate about people, hospitality and creating exceptional guest experiences.

Dawn Maskell is Professor of Brewing & Distilling Science at Heriot-Watt University where she is Director of the International Centre for Brewing & Distilling. In this role she teaches undergraduate and postgraduate students on topics including yeast and fermentation, product quality, sustainability and aspects of packaging. Her research interests include co-fermentation for whisky, the valorisation of co-products, process improvement and sustainability and has multiple publications on distilling topics. Dawn is a member of the Chartered Institute of Brewers and Distillers and sits on the Scottish Section Committee. She a Liveryman by Presentation of the Worshipful Company of Distillers and has been on the organising committees of the Worldwide Distilled Spirits Conference and the Young Scientists Symposium in Malting, Brewing and Distilling. 

Josh is a long-standing member of the R&D team at BarthHaas UK with over 12 years of experience in the hop industry, spanning roles in the quality and R&D departments. Now working as Technical Innovation Manager, Josh’s work focuses on supporting new product launches and helping breweries and beverage producers implement innovative advanced hop products into their recipes and processes. Josh holds an MSc in Brewing Science from the University of Nottingham and is currently pursuing a PhD at the same institution. His research focuses on evaluating the sensory and analytical properties of beer when dry-hopped with traditional versus advanced hop products. Josh uses his expertise to translate research into practical, real-world applications.

Phil is the Client service director for UK and Ireland at CGA working with an array of drinks supplier business, wholesalers and licensees to understand the opportunities and challenges that exist in the on trade. Phil has worked extensively in multiple markets in his career, advising on NPD strategy and sales optimization for the global alcohol supply businesses

TRKR, part of the NIQ Partner network, supports FMCG suppliers across all categories, with a specific focus on Category Management and New Product Development. Clients ranging from Peperami and McBride, to BrewDog and Albert Bartlett.
Mark is co-founder & Insight Director at TRKR, leading Category Management and Bespoke Insight projects for clients. Mark not only supports clients with accessing EPOS and Panel data from NIQ and Kantar, he also then creates compelling retail trade arguments and often presents to retail buyers alongside TRKR clients as their outsourced insight expert.
Mark has helped several brands achieve national listings with Tesco and Sainsbury’s in particular, as well as winning private label tenders with M&S.

Prior to TRKR, Mark spent 15 years at Kantar Worldpanel as Business Unit Director where he headed up the Ireland and Scotland business units, responsible for a combined turnover of £6m.

Jo Stewart co-founded Stewart Brewing with her husband Steve in 2004 and has been instrumental in shaping the company’s marketing and sales strategy. With a background in events and marketing, she continues to contribute creatively and guide the overall marketing direction of the business, although she now has a less hands-on role. Outside of work, Jo is an enthusiastic open water swimmer, runner, and, of course, beer drinker.

“Son of a Brother” Chris was raised in a brewery helping label bottles, packing boxes & digging out mashtuns from an early age, it was pretty inevitable he would step into the family business. Now Director at Williams Bros Brewing Co his day to day is still as varied as ever from NPD & Recipe development through events, tech services and working with production & quality to ensure the best beer they can produce

Will Ullstein was appointed as UK CEO of YouGov in September 2024, a newly created role reflecting the company's strategic focus. 
  
Prior to joining YouGov in 2015, he held senior research and commercial positions at several leading Market Research agencies and start-ups. 
  
Will is a sought-after industry speaker, regularly presenting at prestigious events including DMEXCO, IAB, Festival of Marketing, Marketing Week Live, Online Marketing Rockstars, and Cannes Lions. 
  
He holds a BA in Economics from the University of Sussex. Beyond his professional achievements, he is a keen sportsman and proud father of two, bringing the same dedication to his personal life as he does to driving YouGov's continued success.

Sonja Mitchell is the founder and MD of Jump Ship Brewing, Scotland's first dedicated alcohol-free brewery.  Sonja moved to Scotland in 2009 and fell in love with the food and drink scene.  Unable to find the beer she craved when she no longer wanted the fuzzy head next day, she jumped ship from her day job in 2019 to brew her own. A bold leap for someone with no background in brewing or the drinks industry. She launched the business from her garage and has since scaled Jump Ship to a team of seven, producing a range of award-winning beers at their specialist facility in Midlothian. 

 
Kevin and Julia are the founders and directors of Howe Beer Project, a small brewery in the heart of Fife. Kevin, a brewer by trade, and Julia, a freshwater ecologist, founded the brewery with a focus on community engagement through their taproom and events space. Opening the doors in June 2025, they have found their idea well supported by locals and visitors, and have even gone on to win UK’s Best New Independent Brewery this year at SIBA’s BeerX conference.  Through the past year, they have built creative partnerships with a range of local businesses and community groups and have also made some pretty good beer along the way. 

Allyson Banford is Audit Director at Johnston Carmichael, joining from a Big 4 firm in 2015. A highly experienced auditor, Allyson puts quality first and has developed a specialism within, and a passion for, the Food & Drink sector.  She provides assurance and strategic insight to support growth and resilience in a highly competitive market. Key clients include Williams Bros, Walker’s Shortbread, Tunnock’s, Highland Spring and Browns Food Group.