Remy Toasts 23 Percent First Quarter Sales Jump On More Upbeat Distributors
July 21, 2011Rémy Cointreau posted turnover of €198.6 million ($285m) for the three months through June, its fiscal first quarter, a rise of 22.5% year on year. While Rémy acknowledged that the first quarter traditionally has less significance than its upcoming quarters on its full year (Q1 typically accounts for around 18% of Rémy’s yearly sales), double-digit turnover growth across its U.S., Europe and Asia operations was encouraging nonetheless.
Rémy said that in addition to marketing investments during the quarter, it “benefited from a change in attitude of distributors, who were more upbeat in certain markets.” That included the U.S. and Europe, where Rémy reported some distributor restocking. Still more encouraging is the company’s view that the U.S. on-premise is now improving after several difficult years.
Sales were again driven by Rémy Martin Cognac, which rose 32% organically to €112 million ($161m), with its “superior qualities” posting the highest growth across all regions (Rémy Martin benefits from lower exposure to the U.S.’s declining VS Cognac segment than some competitors, notably Hennessy). The Liqueurs & Spirits division, including Cointreau, Mount Gay rum and St. Rémy, was also on the rise in the U.S. and Europe, increasing 7.8% to €45 million ($65m) during the period.
Meanwhile, Rémy’s “partner brands”—such as Edrington Group’s Cutty Sark (which left Skyy Spirits to join the Rémy USA portfolio June 25), Famous Grouse and the Macallan Scotch whiskies—rose 16.6% to €42 million ($60m) in the first quarter. The partner brand unit also now includes Rémy’s ongoing global distribution of Piper-Heidsieck and Charles Heidsieck Champagnes (as well as Piper Sonoma in the U.S.), brands it recently sold to French company EPI for €412 million ($592m) in a deal that took effect July 8.
| Rémy Cointreau Group – Global Sales Volume by Type (thousands of nine-liter cases) |
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| Fiscal Year Ending March | Percent Change | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2009-2010 | 2010-2011 |
| Cognac | 1,483 | 1,545 | 1,645 | 4.2% | 6.5% |
| Liqueurs/Spirits | 4,008 | 3,773 | 3,597 | -5.9% | -4.7% |
| Champagne1 | 775 | 574 | 602 | -25.9% | 4.9% |
| Total2 | 6,266 | 5,892 | 5,844 | -6.0% | -0.8% |
| 1sold to EPI on May 31, 2011 2excludes partner brands Source: IMPACT DATABANK |
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Tagged : Remy Cointreau
