Diageo and Starward end partnership
Australian whisky brand Starward has confirmed Diageo’s Distill Ventures accelerator programme will no longer be involved in the business as the brand returns to founder-led stewardship.
Diageo had held a 30% minority stake in the Australian whisky business since 2015, after it invested in the brand through its Distill Ventures programme.
Now, Starward founder Dave Vitale has fully acquired the business and will lead the brand into its next chapter.
He said: “It’s been more than 10 years since I last led Starward. With the considerable volume of work done in that time by a deeply dedicated team, this feels like a rare opportunity to scale what we know works in a category that’s only just getting started.
“I feel incredibly lucky to be doing that with the best brand, the best people, and the best years still ahead of us.”
Distill Ventures was created to support up-and-coming distilleries with funding and mentoring for quick expansion. However, in 2025, Diageo pulled back on the incubator programme as part of its cost-cutting strategy, which saw other brands under the initiative’s ward, such as Danish whisky Stauning, lose out.
Last year, Vitale told The Spirits Business that the brand’s relationship with Diageo was “business as usual for the time being”.
He also said the partnership had helped strengthen Australia’s standing in the global spirits market: “That’s that opportunity and it shows how large multinationals see us as a place, both domestically but also internationally.”
Vitale established the Melbourne-based brand in 2007 with the aim of creating a modern Australian-style of whisky that was unique and accessible. The brand matures its expressions in Australian red wine barrels.
The brand has gained an international following over the years and has previously noted that half of its revenue comes from overseas markets. It exports to Europe, the US, the UK and Japan, and also has a presence in the travel retail space.
In November, The Spirits Business spoke to Starward’s head distiller and head blender, Carlie Dyer, on how she approaches distilling through a wine lens.
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