The Wine Paris & Vinexpo Paris 2023 wine fair has closed its doors. Objective achieved for French winegrowers, but also for American, Turkish and even Chilean producers who have come to make as many commercial transactions as possible with buyers from all over the world. Business as usual? Not really.
How to sell wine in times of uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine and the return of inflation? This is the question that all players in the sector are asking themselves.
In his Bordeaux estate, Jean-Jacques Bonnie, owner of Château Malartic-Lagravière in Pessac-Léognan, has noticed that delivery times are getting longer. “ For single capsules, a six-month wait, for those intended for Grands Crus, a three-month wait today. Tensions over raw materials, which began with the exit from Covid, persist. That alone is a concern. Add to that the price of gas, which has been multiplied by six here, and the price of electricity multiplied by eight,” he lists.
” A lot of problems arise on a daily basis, a mix of insecurities which makes the traders of the place of Bordeaux quite on the defensive and their customers too. They buy on the fly, without building up stocks »,still observes Jean-Jacques Bonnie. “For the 2022 vintage, which we are going to put on the market in May and June, the prices of the bottles are bound to increase. But it is also because the quality is there. It is a very great vintage! », concludes this Grand Cru Classé producer from Graves. However, he adds: We are not disconnected from the rest of the economy. We are going through this crisis like everyone else. But we try to adapt and support all of this in the most human way possible. »
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We consume less, but better
Wine prices are rising, but their consumption is falling, especially in France, notes Jean-Michel Deluc, sommelier, co-founder of Petit Ballon, an online wine merchant. This makes things difficult for the business of French winegrowers who have little or no international presence. But beware: if export is the solution, quality is the watchword, specifies this sommelier.
And to help us better understand market trends, he evokes an hourglass image: “ We now have the upper part of the hourglass, everything high-end works very well. Anything synonymous with luxury works. And this despite the crisis. On the other hand, we also have the lower part of the hourglass. These cheap and less good wines that are struggling to sell. The consumer is willing to shell out a certain amount of money for a big name, a name that has been branded well. But he wouldn’t be if he was someone little known ».
Luxury sells surprisingly well
According to experts, we are almost witnessing a breathlessness of the belly of the market in favor of luxury products which are selling very well, even surprisingly very well. The players in the sector do not always understand this paradox. In these difficult times, has wine become a new safe haven, like gold or the dollar?
Without a doubt, believes Marie Mascré, founder and associate director of the Sowine agency. A real phenomenon in the world of wine. “That hasn’t always been the case. But it is more and more today. We have consumers who are ready to pay more for certain objects or, in this case, certain bottles of wine or bottles of champagne. And what is certain is that today’s consumer, and even more so young consumers, even very young ones, really have expectations of the brand,” concludes the expert. And among these consumer expectations, in particular respect for the environment and people.
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