He founded Ringwood Brewery and was a co-founder and first chairman of the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA).
He went to Highgate School,[1] followed by the British merchant navy training ship HMS Conway.
His father worked for the brewing equipment supplier Pontifex, and his great-uncle had run a brewery in Christchurch.
[1] Austin was the prime mover in establishing the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) in 1980, and its first chairman.
[2] Under his leadership, SIBA campaigned for 20 years, without the support of any other body, for a progressive beer duty system (smaller breweries to pay less tax on their products) to be introduced in the UK.