Skip to content
Search
AI Powered
Latest Stories

Champagne sales plunge on pandemic blow

Champagne fell flat last year, with sales tumbling as the COVID-19 pandemic forced drinking venues to close and celebratory events were put on ice, although some year-end cheer meant the decline was less steep than initially forecast.

Producers' group CIVC said on Tuesday that sales of bubbly dropped 18 per cent in 2020 by volume, which could lead to a €1 billion (£890 million) fall in value. It expects the pandemic to continue to weigh on demand in the first half of this year.


"It is a little better than we had thought," CIVC co-Chairman Maxime Toubart told reporters. "Around the world, even if we are not allowed to party, there were still some events to celebrate, and champagne is a symbol of celebration."

France and key export outlets Britain and the United States each saw a 20 per cent drop in champagne volume sales in 2020, while Japan, another major market, registered a steeper 28 per cent decline, CIVC said.

Australia was a bright spot, with volumes exported there rising 14 per cent.

Total sales of champagne fell to 245 million bottles in 2020 from almost 300 million in 2019. In value terms, provisional estimates put 2020 sales at some €4 billion, CIVC said.

It was the first time in 50 years that exports fared better than domestic sales, Jean-Marie Barillere, CIVC co-Chairman, said.

"This health crisis is not like other crises," he said, before explaining that the drop in sales was not the result of falling consumer confidence in France for example.

Rather it was the loss of traditional outlets like bars and restaurants that had hurt the most.

After initial lockdowns, the CIVC had projected annual sales volumes would fall by about a third and value sales by €1.7 billion.

The sector decided in July to substantially limit production to support prices, and was able to maintain the product's value as a result.

"It was a dark year, but we managed the crisis by limiting output ... and the end result is better than we feared in July," Barillere added.

In view of the better volumes than previously expected, the group said producers had agreed to release 400 kilos per hectare of grapes from their reserves, to complement the 8,000 kg/ha harvested last year.

The year-end holiday period saw some pick-up in demand, CIVC said.

British supermarket retailers reported brisk demand for champagne and other festive specialities, while in France supermarket sales of champagne rose sharply, according to market analyst Nielsen.

The start of this year is likely to remain tough with restaurants and bars still closed and events on hold due to the pandemic, but there are prospects of a rebound later in the year if countries start easing restrictions, CIVC said.

More for you

A woman enters the Selfridges department store

A woman enters the Selfridges department store on December 13, 2024 in London, England

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail faces mixed fortunes in 2025 amid cost pressures, AI opportunities, and high street revival


The UK retail sector is bracing for a challenging but opportunity-filled 2025, according to Jacqui Baker, head of retail at RSM UK. While the industry grapples with rising costs and heightened crime, advancements in artificial intelligence and a revival of the high street offer potential pathways to growth, she said.

Keep ReadingShow less
unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend

Photo: Southend-on-Sea City Council

1,100 unsafe soft drinks seized in Southend safety crackdown

Southend-on-Sea City Council officials have secured food condemnation orders from Chelmsford Magistrates Court, resulting in the seizure and destruction of 1,100 unauthorised soft drinks.

The condemned drinks, including Mountain Dew, 7-UP, Mirinda, and G Fuel energy drinks, were found during routine inspections of food businesses across Southend by the council’s environmental health officers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London

A customer browses clothes inside Charity Super.Mkt at Brent Cross Shopping centre in north London on, December 17, 2024

Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP via Getty Images

Brits kindle Christmas spirit with second-hand gifts

Bursting with customers one afternoon the week before Christmas, a second-hand charity shop in London's Marylebone High Street looked even busier than the upscale retailers surrounding it.

One man grabbed two puzzle sets and a giant plush toy as a present for friends, another picked out a notebook for his wife.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Nothing is more important than your Mental Elf

Lancashire Mind’s 11th Mental Elf fun run was its biggest and best yet – a sell-out event with more than 400 people running and walking in aid of the mental charity, plus dozens more volunteering to make the day a huge success.

The winter sun shone on Worden Park in Leyland as families gathered for either a 5K course, a 2K run, or a Challenge Yours’Elf distance which saw many people running 10K with the usual running gear replaced with jazzy elf leggings, tinsel and Christmas hats.

Keep ReadingShow less
A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale

A woman walks past a window display promoting an ongoing sale, on December 13, 2024 in London, England.

Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images

Retail sales disappoint before Christmas

UK retail sales rose less than expected in the runup to Christmas, according to official data Friday that deals a fresh blow to government hopes of growing the economy.

Separate figures revealed a temporary reprieve for prime minister Keir Starmer, however, as public borrowing fell sharply in November.

Keep ReadingShow less