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James Gin hires ex-Distill Ventures director as CEO
By Rupert HohwielerFormer Top Gear presenter James May’s namesake gin brand has made two leadership hires as it looks to global expansion.

Vishal Patel, who was formerly global whisky director at Distill Ventures, has been named global CEO, while Matthew McKee (of Magnetic Brands) will join the gin brand as UK sales head.
May founded the brand in 2021 with Hugh Anderson of Downton Distillery, with the pair producing the gin in Wiltshire, England.
It now claims to have surpassed the £1 million (US$1.2m) sales mark with half of its revenue coming from the US, where the brand is currently available at 15 Total Wines stores in California. Further expansion in the country is planned for 2025.
Patel joins from Distill Ventures, where he was noted for his work with startups and ‘growth stage businesses’, amplifying visibility and boosting market reach of brands such as Mr Black and Seedlip from ‘pre-launch to acquisition’. He also led investments for whisky producers like Japanese distillery Kanosuke and English brand Fielden.
Moreover, he also founded Sollasa in 2021, an apéritif he created with his brother-in-law Sajag Patel, and sold to Innovatus Drinks last year.
On joining James Gin, Patel said: “The potential with James Gin is massive: our focus on building a community online through our organic social content, amplified by James’ voice, enables us to reach and engage with a broad mainstream audience that loves the values our brand stands for and the quality of our product keeps them coming back for more.
“Our following and levels of engagement from fans the world over is phenomenal – I have not seen anything like this in my time working with startup drinks brands.
“We’re coming into the UK market at the tail of the gin boom, but with consumers turning their backs on flavoured gins, more classic styles using high-quality, interesting botanicals, like ours, are coming back in favour.”
The brand’s range includes London Drizzle, which is inspired by the rain on the city’s pavement, Asian Parsnip, Navy Strength, and its latest addition, California Dreamgin’.
‘Tremendous potential’ in US
Mushroom-flavoured with an umami profile, May had said California Dreamgin’ was released as a bit of “thank you” to the state, and the US, where his gins have seen strong sales. Promoting the brand’s Asian Parsnip flavour in California on what he called his ‘SoCal Tour’, May drew thousands of fans to his appearances.

Of the “huge untapped potential of gin” in the US and how James Gin can leverage it, Patel explained: “James Gin plays in the super-premium price tier (US$30-plus) which is forecast to grow in the US at a five-year CAGR [compound annual growth rate] of 10% [IWSR data 2023-28].
“Growth in this category is driven by the 22-34 audience, who have bought heavily into cocktail culture. Our leading social and YouTube content puts us in pole position to acquire these customers where they spend their time, online, and the direct-to-consumer (DTC) channel has tremendous potential Stateside.”
Meanwhile, joining Patel in a new head position is McKee, who is tasked with driving UK sales.
James Gin said McKee brings 20 years of industry experience to the brand, working with spirits companies such as Proximo Spirits, Biggar & Leith and Distill Ventures.
One route already planned to accelerate growth is through social media, where May has a large following courtesy of his Planet Gin YouTube channel. This, the brand noted, can ‘spread the word to fans and new potential customers alike’.
McKee commented: “2024 saw our first on-trade listings at pubs and groups such as The Marketplace and also securing distribution with LWC Drinks.
“The thirst for a well crafted premium savoury gin is there and we look forward to working with our partners and future partners in 2025 to really put savoury gins on the map.”
In spring last year, The Spirits Business caught up with May for the lowdown on why he got into the gin business and his aspirations.
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