Siobhán Payne and Hannah Sherman-Cox, who founded London Cocktail Week in 2010, will take full ownership from Pernod Ricard-owned Speciality Drinks.
Siobhán Payne (left) and Hannah Sherman-Cox (right). Image courtesy of The Pinnacle Guide
The pair behind London Cocktail Week have announced they will acquire the festival in a deal expected to be finalised by February 2026.
Payne and Sherman-Cox launched the festival in 2010 while working with Simon Difford at Difford’s Guide. In 2014, London Cocktail Week joined the Speciality Drinks portfolio, founded and owned by brothers Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh. The business was subsequently sold to Pernod Ricard in 2021.
Its founders have retained minority shares in London Cocktail Week in the past, but this acquisition will mark the first time the women have taken total ownership.
“It is for the good of the festival for it to stay with us, for it to grow into whatever it might become – but the only people that can do that is the people that founded it, who care about it so urgently,” Payne told The Spirits Business in an exclusive interview.
London Cocktail Week’s change of hands comes after a long series of conversations between the respective stakeholders.
News of the acquisition follows the recent rebrand of The Whisky Exchange, Speciality Drinks and Whisky.Auction. Speciality Drinks, the arm under which London Cocktail Week has sat, has rebranded as The Whisky Exchange Trade.
Natalie Tennent, managing director for The Whisky Exchange, commented: “As we move into our new chapter and our exciting new look for The Whisky Exchange, this felt like the right time to release London Cocktail Week into the capable hands of Hannah and Siobhán.
“They have always been the driving force behind the festival and we’re excited to watch it continue to blossom in the coming years.”
London Cocktail Week’s 16th edition came to a close on 19 October 2025.
Payne and Sherman-Cox are also co-founders of The Pinnacle Guide, which ranks global venues against specific criteria to award the best examples with one, two or three pins. Read more here.
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