Hannah Tovey to replace Ross Carter as London Wine Fair chief
Hannah Tovey will replace Ross Carter as head of the London Wine Fair after the show takes place at the end of this month.
Tovey is best known for creating Imbibe Live in 2010, one of the UK’s leading drinks exhibitions and she will continue working in her current role at The Wine Gang until starting at Brintex on 22 June.
Commenting on her role, Tovey said: “Having attended London Wine Fair as both visitor and exhibitor for the last 17 years straight, I’ve clocked up some serious mileage in the aisles.
“It’s the UK trade’s flagship event for us all to both profit from and celebrate in equal measure and to project outwards to the rest of the wine world with pride.
“Undoubtedly it is a challenging climate, but having launched a successful trade magazine, website, and large scale exhibition right at the beginning of a huge recession, I know that uncertainty needn’t preclude the continued success and the growth of the LWF if the formula is right.”
Carter has been event director since 2013 but has announced his departure from the role after the show concludes on 24 May to join food events company Fresh Montgomery in July.
Carter will mostly be remembered for relocating the Brintex-run fair from the Excel Building in east London to Olympia in Kensington.
Bill Butler, managing director of Brintex, said: “Thanks to Ross the London Wine Fair is now a completely different event from the corporate days of Excel. The exhibition is clearly focused on delivering a first-class visitor experience of discovery, education, networking and business.
“As The Fair evolves into the future I would like to thank Ross for his enormous contribution and wish him every success in his new role.”