Remy Cointreau said it had made an “excellent” start to its present financial year and predicted further growth in operating profit at the same time as heavily increasing its investment in promoting brands, especially its premium Remy Martin and Louis XIII cognacs.
 
While citing the buoyant American market as an engine of growth, Remy also underlined the importance of China to its business.
 
Although sales of imported brands account for only 1.5% of spirits imports to China, its middle class is growing exponentially, a long-term trend that can only be underlined by last week’s  about-turn in Beijing to allow families to produce three children. That is a pathway  to ever stronger opportunities for global brands.
 
Remy Cointreau was quick of the blocks in developing the Chinese market and is by far the sector leader in cognac, the predominant imported spirit.
 
Eric Vallat, the chief executive, revealed that in the second half of its year, Remy achieved a staggering growth rate of 39% in sales to China, bringing the annual growth rate up to 17% after accounting for the ravages of coronavirus on the first six months’ figures, which suffered a 7% fall.
 
One of the key factors behind that success was e-commerce, which chairman Marc Hériard Dubreuil said now generates “more than 20% of our business” in China.