Belvédère sales hit by global spirits slowdown

French drinks group Belvédère has seen a decline in its year-to-date sales due to a “global fall in the wine and spirits market”.

French drinks group Belvédère, maker of Marie Brizard liqueurs, has seen a 9.5% decline in sales

The group, the third largest producer of French spirits, saw a net sales decline of 9.5% in the year to 30 September 2014, totaling €356.7 million.

Blaming a global slowdown in the wine and spirits sector, the company said it had expected a decline and said that it continued to gain in market share.

In its domestic market, Belvédère witnessed a 6% decline in net sales to €161.5m due to a decrease in export sales and the end of contracts in France due to its “strategy of focusing on high margin activities”.

Meanwhile in Poland, another key market for the group, sales dropped almost 10% to €141.4m as trading conditions remained tough and sales of third party vodka plummeted.

However, in Lithuania sales grew 30% while net sales were described as “stable” in the US and increased 8.7% in Brazil.

“Over the first nine months of 2014, the group has been operating on falling markets, which has affected its sales,” said Belvédère CEO Jean-Noël Reynaud, a former executive of Rémy Cointreau who was recently appointed to the post.

“Within this context, it has however been able to make the most of the solidity of its brands and maintain or even improve its market share.

“The aim is to now fully capitalise on the potential of our emblematic brands by deploying a strategic plan that will be revealed in December 2014.”

In August this year, it was revealed that Belvédère’s chairman Krzysztof Trylinski would be resigning from the company due to “personal reasons”.

The French spirits market has suffered in recent years due to the on-going austerity measures in China, with total sales dropping sharply in the first six months of 2014.