MARNIER-LAPOSTOLLE COULD BE FOR SALE

Grand Marnier Group is considering a variety of business options, including a sale, with the help of Rothschild, according to sources.

Grand Marnier is famous for its orange liquor which is a key ingredients in many cocktails.

Marnier, Grand Marnier and Cognac Marnier

The news sent shares of the French cognac producer soaring by 8.5% to $5,094, placing the company at a value of nearly $433 million.

Grand Marnier was founded in 1827 by Jean-Baptiste Lapostolle, who started a distillery producing fruit liquors. Now, it produces liquors (Grand Marnier), cognac (Marnier), armagnac (Lapostolle), pineau (Marnier) and wines (Lapostolle).

Grand Marnier is famous for its orange liquor which is a key ingredients in many cocktails.

Source: BusinessWeek.com

VIRAL MARKETING IS REAL BUT RARE

How could a small business go viral?

There are 1000s of businesses which everyday are spending time to communicate and to create campaigns in hope that they go viral some day. Getting the buzz is the dream of so many entrepreneurs like.

You hear about it all the time, however, it is like the lottery we know there are winners but it does not seem to happen so often. The reality of viral marketing is that it does not happen often at all, but it happens!

Stephen Cronk, owner of Mirabeau in Provence, France was able after more than 200 videos to catch the eyes of more than 8 million viewers with a short little video on how to open a bottle of wine with nothing else than the bottle and 1 shoe. Always keep it short 50 seconds.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1wROm-OF9w&w=560&h=315]

Stephen says his videos are not serious but they are engaging and talk about practical things whereas its competitors' videos are over prepared and dull. It takes his wine seriously but more importantly he nurtures his communication with his consumers in hope that his story captivates people enough that they try to share it with other people.

Differentiate by being authentic and consequently engaging. His story is simple but many people can relate to it: being an English man in south of France with his wife and three children. Not so unique after all! Hennessy, Martell, Remy Martin, etc. that is more or less how it started centuries ago.

Source: BeverageDaily.com

LOUIS XIII LIMITED SERIES BLACK PEARL EDITION WAS JUST RELEASED TO CELEBRATE REMY MARTIN 140TH YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Rémy Martin has unveiled a limited edition Louis XIII Cognac in celebration of the brand’s 140th anniversary, Louis XIII Black Pearl Anniversary Edition. The blend of more than 1,200 eaux-de-vie ranging from 40 to 100 years in age is from a single 560 liter tiercon (tierçon in French exactly) taken from the Heriard Dubreuil family’s private cellars, the third of its kind released by the family in the past century.

This special limited edition Black Pearl cognac made its U.S. debut on October 30 at Alicia Keys' annual Black Ball gala, the centerpiece of an exclusive auction prize that generated $30,000 for the singer's Keep a Child Alive charity.

Remy Martin Louis XIII Black Pearl 140th Anniversary

Rémy Martin does not release the number of Louis XIII bottles produced a year and keeps this information as a company secret. The Louis XIII Limited Series Black Pearl Anniversary Edition is packaged in a metallic decanter from the House of Baccarat, with 775 decanters released worldwide at a suggested retail priced of $16,000 each.

HENNESSY IS BEING SAVVY IN THIS DIFFICULT TIME

With cognac market falling in China by 19% to 1.5 million cases last year due to Chinese government tightening on conspicuous behaviors, cognac houses are re-focusing on the USA, which remains Cognac’s largest market by volume at approximately 4 million cases.

In addition, the cognac houses are introducing a great deal of innovations with a premiumization and launching limited edition: Remy Martin VSOP Cask Finish, Hennessy VS designed by Shepard Fairey, etc.

In particular, Hennessy is coming out of this turbulent times with some good growths and prospect of more growth estimated at about +5% in the coming months. These results come from specifically 4 continuous efforts:

1) Deep pocket spending on advertising & promotions.

2) Months after months, campaigns after campaigns rigorous pressure on the young Legal Drinking Age (LDA) consumers fueled by Hip Hop artists and , but not only, as Hennessy has widen its appeal with celebrities such as Manny Pacquiao, and vintage legends such as Sir Malcolm Campbell and his iconic Bluebird.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sb2x87zq0qI&w=560&h=315]

 3) Dedicated segmentation, target, and positioning plans aiming at precisely reaching specific personas:

. NAS campaigns for instance, with African American targets.

. Manny Pacquiao for instance, with Hispanic targets.

. Sir Malcolm Campbell for instance, with mainstream markets.

4) Continuous innovations. Open mindedness and innovation are 2 different things but innovation requires open mindedness. Hennessy is thoroughly embracing creativity and setting new standards n the industry. Hennessy has dominated the cognac industry for 100 of years. How impressive!

What the future holds? A growing Hispanic population consuming cognac.

Source: Shanken Daily News

THE HARVEST IS OVER IN COGNAC AND THE PROSPECTS ARE GOOD FOR THIS VINTAGE

In Charentes, the home of cognac, volume is predicted to climb 12 percent to 8.82 million hectoliters from 7.88 million hectoliters, with a warm and dry September halting the development of botrytis and mildew fungal disease.

Harvest of the ugni blanc grapes used for distilling cognac started late September, with “clearly” higher-than-usual grape weight compensating for a reduced fruit count. 80% of the harvest suffered from difficult climates during the summer with hailstorms earlier in the summer mid june to late June. And a rainy summer, with a cooler than usual August. September was surprisingly sunnier which allowed for a last minute recovery of the situation.

99% of the producers have completed their harvest as of today.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwZ5TCcE8bk&w=560&h=315]

Distilling cognac will start in 3 weeks. Regulations allow distillation to be operated from 15th November to 31st March. Right now producers are focused on fermenting their juices into wines in times for the 4 1/2 months distilling season.

9 liters of wine with 9% Alc/Vol will produce 1 liter of eaux-de-vie with 70% Alc/Vol. Eaux-de-vie is the name of the spirit produced from distillation. Only after it is aged 2 years in oak barrels, the eaux-de-vie is then called cognac.

HOW USING CONSUMER TRENDS TO LAUNCH NEW SPIRITS?

Launching new products can be a big revenue driver, but it can also be a big cost to companies. The beverage industry is well-positioned for new products that capitalize on consumer trends, but there are several things companies should keep in mind when launching new beverage products, a panel of experts said during a recent Beverage Industry webinar.

Old metal iron with new tag

1st Key element = Value:
Consumers are willing to pay more for products they find valuable and that make their lives better.

2nd Key element = Identifying Innovators and Early Adopters:
These consumers are looking for new products and if they like them they quickly tell others.

3rd Key element = Understanding Millenials:
They look for details and unique points of differentiation.

4th Key element = Planning beyond the Launch year.
A great deal of companies fail has they plan for resources just for the first year and cannot keep the momentum year 2. Example, lesser media exposures, lesser cash flow to replenish the shelves, etc.

Source: SmartBlogs

WINE VISION CONFERENCE THIS NOVEMBER WILL REVIEW OPPORTUNITIES FROM EMERGING MARKETS

The 2014 Wine Vision conference to be held in London on November 17-19 2014 at the Shangir-LA at the Shard and the Hurlimgham Club.

Wine Vision Conference 2014

It will discuss solutions on how  to focus on new consumers and emerging markets. Traditional markets are under pressure from lowering margins and increasing consumer choices. Thus, new markets are becoming appealing for their growth potentials. The key is tapping into emerging markets to balance the declining sales from traditional markets.

The conference will hear from experts in many fields including Prof. Barry Smith, Alice and Jerome Tourbier, Dan Jago, Jean-Guillaume Prats, Jaime Araujo, Charles Banks, Sara Norell, Mike Veseth.

Topics will include branding, packaging, multi-channel retailing, digital communications and emerging markets – freshly igniting the debate about how the industry can innovate and prepare better for the future.

 Source: Wine Vision Conference