Chief executive of beleaguered drinks brand BrewDog, James Taylor, has left his role following the company’s takeover by US brewer and cannabis company Tilray Brands, BrewDog has confirmed.

Taylor was promoted from chief financial officer to chief executive in March last year after previous boss James Arrow stepped down after less than 12 months.

In his time in post, Taylor oversaw the takeover of the business by Tilray following its collapse into administration earlier in the year. The £33 million buyout cut nearly 500 jobs and left its 200,000 crowdfunding investors without a return.

It is understood that Tilray will not seek to directly replace Taylor, instead relying on its own executives to manage it as part of its international operations. Lauren Carrol, chief commercial officer at BrewDog, will continue to be responsible for day-to-day operations and report to Rajnish Ohri, President of International at Tilray, according to reporting by CityAM.

A Brewdog spokesperson said: “James successfully led Brewdog through its ownership transition. We thank him for his contributions and wish him every success in the future.”

The news comes as Tilray’s chief executive revealed to The Times that the company has injected more than £50 million into the brand since its acquisition, adding that it is “in a good place”, but there is “still a lot of work to do”.

BrewDog cofounder and former owner James Watt is planning to launch a new beer company called Second Best, offering free shares to crowdfunding investors that lost out when Tilray acquired BrewDog.

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