Codorníu beats global path to fizzing sales – 11/12/06

Codorníu’s premium Reserva Raventos Cava has been repackaged in a Modernist-style travel retail exclusive gift tin. The product retails at €12
The newly launched Raimat Viñedos wine range
The newly designed Raimat labels. The wines are marketed as “Taste another culture”
Raimat white wines are made from the Albariño and Chardonnay varieties

SPAIN. Barcelona-based premium winemaker Codorníu is harnessing an international strategy following the appointment of a new CEO with global ambitions. The company is the leading supplier of cava in its home market.

“Spain will now become one market of many in our new focus on globalisation,” Area Director Claudia Philippi told The Moodie Report in an exclusive interview in October.

The company is headed by Xavier Pagés, a former International Director of Codorníu and a member of the Raventós wine family.

Codorníu in travel retail

As a general rule, Codorníu’s product mix in travel retail is 50% cava and 50% premium still wine.

The Nordic region is a sales hotspot for Codorníu, where the winemaker is shifting some 40,000 nine-litre cases annually.

And turnover growth is set to continue to climb following the June 2006 signing of a co-operation agreement with Vin & Sprit in Denmark to handle sales in the Nordic travel retail market.

South America is the fastest-growing market, currently notching up a sales volume of 6,000 cases a year. The company’s products are listed by the major operators including Aldeasa, Brasif/Dufry and Zeinal Duty Free, the Uruguayan ferry operator.

After four years in the market, sales in Brazil with Brasif/Dufry are performing very well, driven mainly by arrivals shoppers, according to Philippi.

The travel retailer carries three wines, both cava and still wine, and has a large in-store display for cava, which has boosted sales.

With the high season starting in the Americas, Codorníu is installing a new display at two Brasif arrivals stores at Sao Paulo Guarulhos Airport.

Codorníu’s newest client is Dubai Duty Free, where the winemaker’s products are about to hit the shelves for the first time in the Middle East travel retail market.

The next step is Asia, where the company is considering appointing an agent.

About the products

Codorníu focuses on three major brands in travel retail: Codorniu cava, and Septima and Raimat still wines.

This year, a significant development has been the re-launch of its Raimat still wine brand featuring modern, contemporary labels aimed at younger customers.

The new Raimat image has been applied to labels, capsules, corks, bottles and cases. There are three new labels. All of them have a common structure in which the brand name is highlighted.

The new silver-coloured Raimat logo occupies the central space. The other elements that stand out on the label are the Raimat coat of arms and the mountains that represent the image of the Pyrenees that can be seen from the winery.

“The new design labels are eye-catching and easy to understand, as consumers can see clearly what type of wine they are buying. New advertisements are featuring the labels,” said Philippi.

In addition, Raimat has launched on the international market a new range of wines: Raimat Viñedos.

The range comprises three wines, a white and two reds, all described as “modern in outlook with novel blends that have undergone little or no ageing so as to highlight their fruit notes”.

The white is made from the Albariño and Chardonnay varieties. The first red is a Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon while the second is a Tempranillo and Syrah.

Nordic ferry operator Viking Line is introducing the three-strong Raimat range from September 2006, while Dutch airline KLM has been pouring Raimat wine in business class from the Summer.

In a further development, Codorníu’s premium Reserva Raventos Cava (Cuvée was its former name) has been repackaged in a Modernist-style travel retail exclusive gift tin. The product retails at €12.

Codorníu’s still wines have a travel retail price range of €8-18. Cava prices run from €10 to €18.

To bring its products alive for the consumer, Codorníu ensures it undertakes in-store sampling and promotional tastings. In a recent event, sales promoters went onboard Silja Line for three months.

“It is very important that consumers try the wine, because a lot of them buy once they have tasted it,” said Philippi.

About Codorníu

Codorníu is a family-owned wine producer that traces its origins back to the 16th century and which, in 1872, was the first to introduce cava in Spain. In its 500-year history Codorníu has remained in the hands of one family, who has succeeded in turning the legacy of its forebear Jaume Codorníu into one of the world’s most important wine companies.

The Codorníu Group tends its own vineyards to obtain the best grape quality for production of wines and cavas. The company owns the largest area of vineyards in Spain – more than 3,000 hectares.

The Codorníu Group produces quality cavas and still wines and is composed of 11 wineries. All of them are located in well-known wine regions, both in Spain and overseas, as follows: Codorníu (D.O. Cava), Raimat (D.O. Costers del Segre), Bodegas Bilbaínas (D.O.C. Rioja and D.O. Cava), Septima (Mendoza, Argentina), Legaris (D.O. Ribera del Duero), Artesa (Napa Valley, California), Bach (D.O. Penedés), Rondel (D.O.Cava), Nuviana (Valle del Cinca), Cellers Scala Dei (D.O.C. Priorato) and Abadía de Poblet (D.O. Conca de Barberá).

For details, contact Claudia Philippi, Area Director, Codorníu, Gran Via 644, 08007, Barcelona, Spain, tel: +34 935 051 562, e-mail c.philippi@codorniu.es Visit www.codorniugroup.com

Food & Beverage The Magazine eZine