Lester Jones
Chief Economist
National Beer Wholesalers Association
Lester Jones serves as the Chief Economist for the National Beer Wholesalers Association, a national trade organization that represents the interests of more than 3,000 licensed beer distributors that service every state. He has more than 20 years of experience in research, survey methodology and applied business economics. He most recently served as Chief Economist at the Beer Institute, where he developed and executed significant research initiatives that helped shape America’s beer industry. He also has become a recognized public speaker, offering in-depth technical, analytical and quantitative expertise.
As NBWA Chief Economist, Jones tracks the economic factors that impact the beer distribution industry and alcohol policy decisions at the federal, state and local levels. He evaluates and develops primary industry data, including economic impact, tax impacts, sales and volume data. In addition to his decade of work at the Beer Institute, Jones previously worked for Arbitron Company (Nielsen) in Columbia, Maryland, and the Regional Economic Studies Institute at Towson State University in Maryland. Jones has a Master of Science in Economics from the University of Delaware and is a Certified Business Economist.