Pete Flynn charts the journey of Anneli Baxter at Loose Cannon Brewery
As a 10-year-old Anneli was already helping out in her parents’ pub, so it was inevitable that such an early introduction to the licensed trade would ultimately lead to a career in this profession.
Sitting down for a chat in the offices of Loose Cannon, Brewery in Abingdon, situated above the towering fermenting vessels below, I asked her about her role as General Manager. “It was the decision of owner Will Laithwaite to step aside and focus on family business interests that created this opportunity,” she told me.
Prior to this Anneli enjoyed a 14-year tenure at Titanic Brewery as general manager and then a move to White Horse Brewery in Oxfordshire.
Starting out, Anneli had a number of sales jobs after Sixth Form college, including a stint at a business entitled Liquid Assets, before joining Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) as director of pubs in the Lincolnshire and Norfolk areas. As S&N moved to the free trade Anneli was able to base herself at Home Brewery which owned about 450 pubs, before moving into the marketing department. Establishing contacts with cask ale wholesalers via Roosters and Oakham, with supply agreements and networking arrangements gave her an invaluable insight into cask ale distribution.
“It was the declining health of my father that led me to take over his wholesale business in 1999, so I had to quit my role at S&N,” she explained. Her father had hitherto bought the business from Keith Bott (one of the founders of Titanic Brewery) and it was after a drunken night out with Keith that led him to offer her the role of GM at Titanic.
“I had to telephone him the the following day to confirm, just to make sure he wasn’t joking,” Anneli went on explain. “At this time Keith was chairman of SIBA and needed help to put systems and processes in place. He did not have the time, and my experience in previous roles provided a natural fit for his business and so I complemented the team.”
Anneli is naturally coy about the introduction of the infamous Titanic Plum Porter, and how it came about. “It was an accidental discovery,” is her recollection, but it is worth mentioning that this genre-defining and multi-award winning beer is responsible for over 60% of Titanic sales; not bad when something as momentous and defining as that happens on your watch!
An opportunity then arose for Anneli to move to White Horse Brewery at Stanford-in-the-Vale. Years earlier co-founder Andy Wilson approached his old pal Keith Bott about setting up a brewery, and, with the help of a third shareholder, Ian Rogers of Wychwood Brewery, WHB was formed. Later, Andy decided that he wished to pursue other interests so Anneli arrived to manage the operation during 2019, and whilst there she was able to make a number of key changes.
“One of these was to complete a full rebrand, and, a redesign of the pump clips enabled White Horse beer to be recognised from afar, notwithstanding the specific beer was not visible on the bar from any great distance,” she recalls. “Another initiative was to introduce Luna as a White Horse subsidiary, enabling small batch brews to be produced. This was really pushing the boundaries and the catch phrase ‘brewed by Mashtronaughts’ further popularised the concept. Rebranding enabled us to modernise and simplify the whole process.”
Just prior to Anneli moving to Oxfordshire she had embarked upon a remote four-year chartered management degree in business management with Staffordshire University. This would prove relevant with regard to her current role and must have created a vision of empowerment for the future. The end of her degree course culminated in her leaving White Horse, which was later sold and closed down, to embark on her current role. She was informed by Staffordshire University the week prior to her interview with Will Laithwaite that she had not only passed the course, but had done so with a First Class Honours degree. This must not only have emboldened her with confidence, but convinced her new boss of her unique credentials.
So in May 2022 Anneli began her new role at Loose Cannon with a mandate from the owner to “operate the brewery as if it were your own”.
For most people you might think it would be enough to run a brewery employing 25 full- and part-time staff, but you would be wrong. Anneli is an an advocate for the small brewing industry and a director of the Society of Independent Brewers and Associates’ (SIBA) Midlands Region. This involves political lobbying with treasury officials, meetings in the House of Commons, and chairing the competitions committee and executive board.
SIBA will oversee the launch during April 2025 of the Indie Beer Campaign. “Beer consumers are being misled by the likes of the global monoliths, who like to disguise their ownership of what you might see as local brand. Camden Town and Beavertown Brewery are examples,” she explains. “Using the app will enable consumers to focus on supporting our local brewers merely by identification and verification.”
Anneli has already begun to implement her own vision for the future of Loose Cannon by developing tap room activities to include wine tasting, charitable events, drag queen bingo, quizzes, live music and hosting book club events, all with the intention of attracting more people to LC. “Our venue is seen as a safe space for women and a place where single women are made to feel welcome,” she adds.
A personal insight sees Anneli continuing to promote LC as a hub for local business and a force for good in the local community, whilst developing a range of events which attract more people. “It’s all about local business, local suppliers and a local craft market where traders can promote their products; we all help each other out,” she says proudly.
Looking ahead it is not unrealistic to expect Anneli to continue to play an important role in the promotion of independent brewers via her considerable networking and nurturing skills. The role of head of SIBA is surely within reach should she wish to add this to her noteworthy list of achievements.
Anneli is a fine example of not being afraid to accept new challenges. The experience she has gained from her roles at Scottish & Newcastle, Titanic and WHB are recognised as major contributions to the brewing industry and represent a success story.