Bankovich Assumes Rhinegeist CEO Role

Other Leadership Changes Announced

Adam Bankovich has been named Rhinegeist Chief Executive Officer at Rhinegeist, effective October 13, 2023. Adam joined Rhinegeist as Chief Commercial Officer in October 2022 and has been leading the company as interim CEO since May 2023. 

In this short time, Adam has thrown himself into the opportunity, getting to know each team and department and used this understanding to frame a company strategy that aligns cultural and financial goals that have won the confidence of leadership and employees. 

“Adam has been able to quickly prioritize our focus, build and communicate a comprehensive strategy and drive collaboration across our company. Through this interim process, we took a comprehensive look at many candidates and ultimately decided Adam was the best fit for this important role,” states Bryant Goulding, Rhinegeist Co-founder. “Adam asks a lot of questions and uses clarity and understanding to get the most out of his team. It’s been really exciting to watch our company blossom under his guidance as we’ve navigated another challenging year.”

“The past year at Rhinegeist has been one of the most fast-paced and exciting of my career, for all the best reasons,” remarks Bankovich. “I’m incredibly proud of everything the team has accomplished that put us in a position to realize growth in 2023 amidst the challenging environment our industry is facing. We are poised and ready to continue growing in 2024 as we roll out the strategies leadership has been working on behind the scenes.”

Additionally, there are other exciting changes within the Rhinegeist leadership team:

• Cole Hackbarth, formerly Director of Brewery Operations, has been named Vice President of Brewery Operations. Cole joined Rhinegeist in 2015 just as the brewery was scaling into regional production. Over the next five years he grew production from 10,000bbls/yr to over 100,000bbls/yr while maintaining a high level of quality and consistent innovation and leading through change. Cole currently oversees Brewing, Quality, Packaging and Maintenance & Engineering with 20 years of craft brewing experience.
• Marc Venegoni, formerly Director of National Accounts, has been named Vice President of Sales. Marc has more than 20 years of industry experience with time spent in the buyer’s seat at retail chains as well as in leadership roles for MillerCoors, Founders & BrewDog. Marc, along with his sales leadership team will be responsible for setting and bringing the commercial strategy to life for Rhinegeist. 
• Tracey Ireland, formerly Director of Marketing, has been named Vice President of Marketing. Tracey leads one of the most creative and dynamic in-house marketing teams in the craft beer industry. Throughout her 8 years at Rhinegeist, Tracey has led our brand to stay ahead of rapidly-shifting alcohol industry trends and stay deeply engaged with our customers. Tracey possesses an in-depth understanding of upstream brand work, go-to-market strategies, and high-profile creative work from her nearly 20 years in the marketing field. 

“The strength of leadership at Rhinegeist has certainly been one of the secrets to our continued growth,” adds Bryant. “We’re excited to see how far we can take this brewery as we tackle the challenges of the future with a clearer sense of where we’re headed and the right team to get us there.”