Remy Cointreau’s new boss has announced “the start of a new era” with a turnaround plan he believes will return the French spirits maker to growth in the next six months.
It comes as the group reported a drop in organic sales of 4.2% to €489.6m in the first half of the 2025-26 year.
“This first half of the year was challenging, but it also marks the start of a new era for Rémy Cointreau”, said Franck Marilly, who joined as CEO earlier this year. “It is time to challenge the way we think and operate.”
Marilly said he has identified five levers to help turn the company around, including focusing investments on top priorities and “redefining how our brands express their DNA”.
The new boss joined at a difficult time with sales dragged down by declines in cognac sales particularly in China, where weak consumer confidence and an anti-dumping investigation is underway. Last year, the company’s total sales fell by around a fifth.
The Paris-listed company’s share price is down by a third since the start of the year with the biggest drop coming since Marilly’s arrival in May.
Remy’s cognac sales – which make up about two thirds of the company - remain under most pressure with revenue down 7.6% in the first half of the year due to a drop in price-mix. Volumes grew 0.7%.
This reflected the difficulties in China with the trend now compounded by the inaccessibility of Chinese duty-free.
The group’s total operating profit fell 13.6% to €108.7m in the first half, better than the expected 18.1% decline in a company-compiled poll of analysts.
The group reiterated its expectations for organic sales growth to range between “stable and low-single-digits”, while operating profit will fall between low-double-digit and mid-teens.
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