LVMH spirits sales drop 14% in Q3

The spirits division of LVMH fell by double digits in the third quarter of 2023 as Hennessy Cognac continued to struggle in the US.

Moët Hennessy, the wine and spirits arm of luxury conglomerate LVMH, saw organic revenue drop by 7% to €4.7 billion (US$4.98bn) in the first nine months of 2023. The subsidiary’s sales for the third quarter fell by 14% to €1.5bn (US$1.6bn).

The decline was led by spirits, which decreased by 14% to €731 million (US$775m) in the third quarter, following a 3% drop in the first half of this year. Wine and Champagne, on the other hand, rose by 2% in the same period.

For the first nine months of this year, LVMH said its flagship Cognac brand, Hennessy, was impacted in the US by its economic environment, the ‘normalisation of demand’ after Covid-19 and the continued high retailer inventory levels.

Moët Hennessy’s sales at the start of 2023 were affected in China by the pandemic and ‘unfavourable calendar phasing’. Hennessy has started to experience a gradual recovery in Asia, the company said.

LVMH’s total revenue grew by 14% in the first nine months of 2023, with third-quarter sales growing by 9%.

Wine and spirits continued to be the only division to decline within Paris-headquartered LVMH, which also sells perfume, cosmetics, watches and jewellery.

LVMH’s spirits portfolio also includes Belvedere Vodka and Scotch brands Glenmorangie and Ardbeg.

Moët Hennessy recently partnered with Dufry to open its first Glenmorangie boutique, located at Heathrow Airport.

Last month, Glenmorangie released a new whisky partly matured in mizunara oak casks and inspired by Japan’s capital city, called A Tale of Tokyo.