Campari Group H1 sales soar 14.2%

Wild Turkey owner Campari Group saw organic net sales increase by 14.2% for the first six months of 2023, led by apéritifs, Tequila and premium Bourbon.

Net sales for the six-month period reached €1.46 billion (US$1.625bn). Net profit rose by 8.9% to €216.9 million (US$241.4m).

Second-quarter (Q2) sales increased by 10.1%, following a 19.5% rise in the previous quarter.

Campari Group said its second quarter was affected by the expected reversal of temporary phasing effects from the first quarter, and ‘very poor weather’ across Southern and Central Europe. The firm was also hit by temporary delistings from European retailers after negotiations over price increases, but these were ‘successfully’ passed through, Campari noted.

The Italian group recorded double-digit growth across all of its regions.

Sales in the Americas rose by 10.6% with double-digit growth (up 11.7%) in the US.

The Southern Europe, Middle East and Africa region grew by 16.6%, with the company’s core Italian market up by 13.4%. France delivered a 21% increase and global travel retail (GTR) soared by 49.8%.

Sales in North, Central and Eastern Europe climbed by 14.5%. Germany rose by 16.4%, while the UK soared by a fifth (20.9%).

Asia Pacific sales rose by more than a quarter (26.2%) with Australia up by 7.5%. Other markets in the region skyrocketed by 57.7%, led by South Korea, Japan, China and India.

Double-digit gains for global brands

In terms of brands, Campari’s ‘global priorities’ grew organically by 15%. Aperol soared by 32.4% for the first half (up 26.2% in Q2), bolstered by a 122.5% increase in the US, further triple-digit growth in GTR, and double-digit gains in Italy, Germany, France, the UK, Spain, Canada, Australia, and other European markets.

Apéritif brand Campari delivered growth of 13.2%.

The Wild Turkey whiskey portfolio rose by 12.5%, driven by the US, Australia, Japan and South Korea, and the ‘outperformance’ of Russell’s Reserve (up 76%).

The UK and Jamaica boosted Campari’s Jamaican rum portfolio (up 13.9%), which includes Appleton Estate.

Skyy Vodka had a positive performance of 7.3%, with gains in China, Australia, South Korea, Japan and GTR.

Grand Marnier liqueur was the only brand to decline within the group’s ‘global priorities’, plummeting by 30.1% after being affected by destocking in the US.

Within the group’s ‘regional priority’ brands (up 16.7%), Espolòn Tequila climbed by 43.4%, led by the US. The ready-to-drink Aperol Spritz reported ‘solid growth’.

Italian specialties and vermouth were flat, the group noted.

Of the ‘local priority’ brands (up 8%), double-digit growth was recorded for Campari Soda and Skyy RTD.

Scotch whisky The Glen Grant grew by double digits after increasing in South Korea, Australia, Japan and China.

CEO Bob Kunze-Concewitz said: “Looking at the remainder of 2023, we remain confident of the positive business momentum across key brand-market combinations, reflecting business seasonality and expected normalisation in volume growth, thanks to strong brand equity and continued strength in the on-premise.”

Campari Group posted organic growth of 16.4% for its 2022 financial year.