James Watt 'terminated' as BrewDog director following savage remarks by new owner
Ella Scott
Featured Image Credit: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images
BrewDog co-founder James Watt is no longer listed as a company director following brutal ‘stigma’ comments made by Tilray Brands boss Irwin D. Simon.
After years of brutal financial losses, craft beer giant BrewDog announced it had officially collapsed into administrationon May 2.
US lifestyle firm Tilray snapped the company up for a £33 million bargain, closing 38 UK bars and making almost 490 staff members redundant.
Various establishments, including the BrewDog hotel in Manchester, have since reopened, while Simon has vowed not to repeat the media stunts associated with the brand’s rise to notoriety.
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The 67-year-old businessman also issued a scathing takedown of Watt, 43, claiming BrewDog no longer needed him.
“I haven’t spoken to James Watt,” Simon stated. “We don’t need James Watt, because if James Watt were ever to come back here – and I’m being very clear, he’s not – what happens is this becomes about James Watt’s second and third act,” he claimed via The Telegraph.
The American’s comments come amid news that the former BrewDog ‘captain and co-founder’ resigned as a director of the firm on 24 March, according to Companies House.
As reported by The P&J, Watt wrote in his resignation letter: “As you will be aware, I have already resigned as a director of all other companies in the BrewDog group in accordance with my obligations under clause 8.1 of the BrewDog investment agreement.”
The termination followed Watts’ attempt to rescue the Ellon brewery brand he co-founded with friend Martin Dickie in 2007 by tabling £10 million of his personal wealth.
Dickie left the Scottish alcohol company in August 2025, citing personal reasons.
Following Tilray’s takeover and Simon’s comments, Watt took to Instagram to claim that he and BrewDog’s new owner had ‘talked at length about the importance of the BrewDog community’ before being ‘personally attacked’.
“He gave a clear indication that if he bought the business he would ensure that Equity Punks retained their equity stake,” the father-of-two typed.
“I am really disappointed that did not happen, and consequently our Equity Punks were left with nothing. That is something I would never have done.”
“He went on to say that there would be no ‘BrewDog fightback without taking the community’ with the brand and ‘without ensuring all team shares are honoured and without reinstating the real living wage’.
“And let’s see, maybe the Equity Punk story is not quite finished yet,” the entrepreneur added.
Various BrewDog bars are currently open for service. Drinks are still being stocked on supermarket shelves, including in Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Morrisons.