HERSHEY, Pa. — We are pleased to announce promotions and restructuring at Tröegs to strengthen our leadership team and our commitment to being a creative and independent brewery.
Marketing
Jen Adams, who has led all branding, creative direction and marketing at Tröegs since 2015, has been promoted to Vice President of Marketing.
Adams developed the brewery’s integrated approach to marketing campaigns and was instrumental in the launch of the new artwork. As VP, Jen will lead business development, provide a long-term company vision and curate the Tröegs brand across all channels while increasing market share and driving retail sales velocity and revenue.
“In the relatively short time Jen has been here at Tröegs, she’s proven herself invaluable,” says founding brother Chris Trogner. “She’s an innovative thinker and a tireless champion of Tröegs, and she’s helped propel the Tröegs story to the forefront of our efforts. We couldn’t be happier to broaden her scope in this leadership position.”
Prior to joining Tröegs, Adams spent more than a decade developing and executing multimillion-dollar marketing campaigns, partnerships and experiential enterprises for Urban Outfitters, a multinational lifestyle retailer headquartered in Philadelphia.
Additionally, Tröegs is bolstering its brewery experience by transitioning the Tours Department to Marketing. The tour team has been instrumental in telling the Tröegs story.
“We have more than half a million visitors a year,” says Adams, “so making sure they have a best-in-class experience is vital. We look forward to the tour team’s continued contributions, inspiriting our guests to talk about Tröegs well beyond their visit.”
Operations
General Manager Ed Yashinsky, who became Tröegs employee No. 3 in 2002, has been promoted to Vice President of Operations.
Yashinsky has done it all at Tröegs, from packaging to warehousing, shipping, building orders, and selling and delivering beer. For the past four years, he has managed the brewery’s retail and production teams.
As VP of operations, Yashinsky will manage day-to-day retail and brewery operations, setting strategic goals, supervising and motivating co-workers, and implementing organizational policies. Additionally, Yashinsky will lead the Human Resources Department and collaborate with Sales and Marketing to meet production and distribution goals.
“It’s hard to imagine Tröegs without Ed,” says brewmaster and founding brother John Trogner. “He started as a volunteer on the bottling line way back when, and since then, he’s worked almost every job in the brewery. His institutional knowledge and willingness to learn have been critical to our success.”
Sales
Jason Kidwell, Director of Sales since 2015, has been promoted to Vice President of Sales.
Kidwell, who started at Tröegs in 2010 as a sales representative in Massachusetts and was promoted to Regional Sales Manager for New England in 2014, will lead strategic and tactical sales efforts for the brewery’s 20-strong Sales team. He’ll also work closely with the VP of Marketing to launch marketing initiatives in the states where Tröegs is sold.
“Tröegs grew by double digits in 2016 and is on track to repeat that this year,” says Chris Trogner. “Jason’s leadership and intimate knowledge of the beer business played big parts in that. We have ambitious goals for the future, and we’re confident he’ll help us achieve them.”
Prior to joining Tröegs, Kidwell drove domestic, craft and imported beer sales and managed accounts at Burke Distributing in Massachusetts.
Mad Elf Grand Cru
Thanks to the success of beers like Perpetual IPA, Troegenator Double Bock, Nimble Giant Double IPA and the Hop Cycle, Tröegs is enjoying double-digit growth in 2017. For the first time in its 20-year history, the brewery will be looking to crack the 100,000-barrel production mark.
In November, Tröegs will cap off its 20th year of production with the release of Mad Elf Grand Cru, a “director’s cut” of Mad Elf brewed with tart Balaton cherries. Tröegs Independent BrewingFounded in Pennsylvania in 1996 by brothers John and Chris Trogner, Tröegs Independent Brewing is driven by a sense of adventure and curiosity. From the beginning, our brewery has been built by family, friends and kindred spirits who share a love of great beer.
“We’re not an English ale brewery,” says co-founder Chris Trogner. “And we’re not a German lager brewery. We take bits and pieces from each one of those traditions and try to come up with what we think is a very creative and great-tasting beer.”
Tröegs is widely known for award-winning beers like Perpetual IPA, Troegenator, Nugget Nectar and Mad Elf, as well as our experimental Scratch Series, Hop Cycle and wood-aged Splinter Series. The annual Art of Tröegs contest showcases our love of art by challenging fans to reuse packaging in an original work. Tröegs distributes to 10 East Coast states and Washington, D.C.