Cooke Optics announced on October 29, 2026 that David Hancock has stepped down as chief executive officer and that Rob Haycock has been appointed to succeed him. Hancock will remain on the board of directors as a non-executive director. I think that is good news for Cooke, and I will explain why below.
David Hancock
Hancock became Cooke’s chief executive officer on January 6, 2025, succeeding Tim Pugh. Before Cooke, he led Enviolo, a premium e-bike component maker, through growth and a sale to a new private equity investor, and then served on its board. It was always a pleasure speaking with the Texas Dutchman (a nod to his time split between the US and the Netherlands) during his time at Cooke. He brought a casual honesty to the role which is uncommon in our industry.
I’m glad he is staying on the board and will remain accessible to Cooke moving forward. Cooke’s announcement credits his tenure with the Panchro 65/i, AP3, and S4 FF/i ranges, and I see that as a strong run for a short tenure. Keeping his experience close, even in a non-executive role, is a sensible move for a company with product cycles this long.
Rob Haycock
Haycock comes to Cooke with experience in UK manufacturing, business development, and finance, and with chief executive roles at four small to medium-sized enterprises. His recent work has been in product and distribution businesses outside cinema, including cycling distribution at ZyroFisher and online print at The Printed Group.
I want to be clear about what he is joining. Cooke has an amazing legacy, built over more than a century in Leicester, with the Cooke Look, its /i Technology, and a team that has kept that standard alive through several changes of ownership and leadership. By joining Cooke, Haycock gets invaluable access to that knowledge and experience. That is a real advantage for a new chief executive, and I hope he uses it well.
I wish him well in the role, and I look forward to working with him.
The Launches That Framed This Moment
To me, the SP3 primes, announced in September 2023, were timed perfectly for a pivot in the industry’s demand for more affordable yet professional lens solutions. The five T2.4 primes, 25mm, 32mm, 50mm, 75mm, and 100mm, were a modern, mirrorless-friendly reimagining of Cooke’s Speed Panchro lenses, offered at a list price of $4,500 per lens, or $21,375 for the five-lens set. That launch predates Hancock, and the credit for it belongs to the team that made it, but it set a direction Cooke has kept following: professional Cooke character, in smaller and more accessible packages, for cameras and customers beyond the traditional rental house base.
The AP3 primes then brought 1.5x anamorphic to full-frame mirrorless cameras, with 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm lenses at T2.4. The S4 FF/i series revived the S4 name for full-frame capture, with six T2.0 primes at a list price of $15,000 per lens. Panchro 65/i extended the Panchro character to 65mm and larger format capture.
A Short Timeline
- 2018: Caledonia Investments acquires a majority stake in Cooke, about 89 percent, in a transaction valuing the business at 96.5 million pounds. Day-to-day operations in Leicester continued unchanged.
- 2020: Les Zellan steps down as chairman and Robert Howard retires. Tim Pugh becomes chief executive officer.
- 2023: Cooke announces the SP3 primes for full-frame mirrorless cameras.
- 2025: David Hancock becomes chief executive officer, succeeding Tim Pugh.
- 2025: Panchro 65/i shipping begins.
- 2026: Cooke introduces the AP3 anamorphic primes and the S4 FF/i full-frame prime series.
- 2026: Hancock steps down as chief executive officer and remains on the board as a non-executive director. Rob Haycock is appointed chief executive officer.
Final Thoughts
I keep coming back to three questions. What should Cooke protect first as it grows: the Cooke Look, the manufacturing in Leicester, or the service relationship with the rental houses and owner-operators who actually put these lenses to work? How far can accessibility go without diluting what makes a Cooke lens a Cooke lens? And will Haycock’s experience in distribution help Cooke reach the owner-operator market that SP3 and AP3 opened up, without losing the high end that built the brand?
I don’t have answers to those questions, and I don’t think Cooke’s press release pretends to either. What I do know is that Cooke goes into this change with a strong recent product record, a new chief executive with real operating experience, and its outgoing chief executive still available to the board. That is a good combination.
View the original Cooke Press Release here.