Following more than a decade of leadership at the helm of the American Craft Spirits Association (ACSA), Margie A.S. Lehrman will retire from her role as Chief Executive Officer, transitioning into a newly created CEO Emeritus position on May 1. ACSA Chief Operating Officer Emily Pennington has been appointed Chief Executive Officer and will lead the organization into its next chapter.
Lehrman joined ACSA shortly after its inception and served as the organization’s inaugural CEO, building the organization from the ground up alongside its founding board members and playing a defining role in evolving the national trade association as it exists today. Her achievements include helping secure the passage of a permanent Federal Excise Tax reduction, advancing efforts to break down longstanding market access barriers for craft producers, shepherding federal hand sanitizer and economic relief programs vital to many distillers’ survival of the Covid-19 pandemic, supporting the introduction and passage of direct-to-consumer (DTC) shipping measures, influencing TTB’s improvement of regulations and processing times to reflect the new craft distilling landscape and forging critical relationships with bipartisan policymakers in Washington and trade groups across the beverage alcohol and agricultural sectors.
She also led the development of the Craft Spirits Data Project, a collaborative report by ACSA and Park Street that provides economic data to craft spirits industry members, investors and policymakers annually. She played an instrumental role in creating the STEPUP Foundation, Inc. (Spirits Training Entrepreneurship Program for Underrepresented Professionals), a sister organization to ACSA whose focus is to educate and provide networking opportunities for the underserved and underrepresented individuals in the craft spirits sector. Lehrman currently serves as president of the STEPUP Board of Directors.
“Helping craft spirits producers and the adjoining community of suppliers has been the greatest honor of my professional life,” says Lehrman. “This is a bittersweet moment, because I care so deeply about ACSA and the community of craft distillers we serve. But I am also incredibly optimistic about the future with much-needed modernization of state and federal law. I look forward to continuing to advise in this newly-created Emeritus role as Emily takes the helm. Emily is a thoughtful, strategic and deeply experienced leader who understands both the challenges and opportunities facing this industry. She is exceptionally well-positioned to lead ACSA forward and continue to advocate for our community.”
Pennington joined ACSA as Chief Operating Officer in January 2025, bringing nearly 15 years of alcohol industry experience spanning content strategy, education and organization management. She has worked closely with Lehrman on the association’s strategic priorities, with a particular focus on strengthening membership value, supporting industry outreach and guiding mission critical operations. Prior to joining ACSA, Pennington developed Wine & Spirits Daily and Park Street University and also played an instrumental role in executing the Craft Spirits Data Project.
“I am deeply grateful to Margie for her extraordinary leadership, her tireless advocacy and the foundation she has built for ACSA and the broader craft spirits community,” says Pennington. “Her contributions to this industry are profound and I am honored to build on that work. As CEO, my focus will be on advancing a modern marketplace where craft distillers have access to sell through the channels that work for their business and consumers have the ability to safely buy where and how they want.”
“I’m excited for the road ahead and for the opportunity to continue working with ACSA’s Board, members, partners and staff to support craft distillers and help position this community for long-term success,” she adds.
