Lofted Spirits president steps down
Pete Marino, the president of Lofted Spirits, will leave his role at the end of June after three years at the Kentucky whiskey maker.
Lofted Spirits is the parent company of Kentucky’s Bardstown Bourbon and Green River Distilling in Owensboro. It also offers a contract distilling service.
Marino announced his departure on LinkedIn last week, but said he intends to stay on as an advisor to “continue supporting the commercial end of the business in any way I can after I wind down my operating role”.
In the post, he wrote: “It’s been a great few years of learning and growing. As a team, we accomplished a lot. Our brands more than doubled despite a well-publicised downturn in American whiskey. We simplified the portfolio and built some extraordinary and unique brands.
“We created some incredible new offerings that whiskey enthusiasts search for and trade vigorously on the secondary market. We opened new tasting rooms to showcase our brands. We overhauled our route to market and expanded into more states. We improved our packaging and in-market execution and so much more.”
He added that it was the “right decision and time” to leave the industry.
Marino continued: “I am leaving an incredible team of passionate and creative folks committed to driving the business forward. We are the biggest and best contract manufacturer of Kentucky whiskey for good reason: the quality, customer service and grain-to-glass offering we provide is unmatched.
“The hospitality we deliver to everyone who walks through our doors is second to none on the Bourbon Trail. And, the Bardstown and Green River brands are in excellent shape to continue to capture the imagination of whiskey drinkers and grow.”
Marino plans to continue working with brands in an advisory capacity.
Lofted Spirits did not provide a comment when asked by The Spirits Business.
Marino’s departure follows the recent exit of Aaron Harris, who was head distiller at Green River. Lofted Spirits said in a statement that it had eliminated a “small number” of production positions as it scales back the business in the face of lower demand for contract-distilled whiskey.
Marino and Lofted Spirits CEO Mark Erwin are currently facing a gender discrimination lawsuit, of which the company denies all allegations.
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