Champagne Market UK Declines
Before we go into the articles discussing the declining shipments of Champagne to the UK, if you would like to see our family produced Champagne products you can do so HERE.
Champagne UK Imports
UK Champagne bottles fell in terms of imports by 1m in 2018, although the UK market for fine Champagne has stabilised.
Official figures were released at ProWein for 2018 in relation to the bottles, and they show that the UK purchased less than in 2017.
Glasses of Champagne
The figures for 2017 showed a drop of 11% from the previous year, which in terms of figures is a drop of around 4 million bottles of Champagne. This figure dropped further by 3.6% to give an overall figure of 26.8m in relation to Champagne gift imports.
UK Champagne Gift Market
We are also seeing that the average price of Champagne in the UK market is increasing, and since the volume of sales is slowing down, the overall effect is that the British market for Champagne is smaller. The end result of all this, is that the ‘drinks business’ believe that the Champagne market is resembling more like it was 30 years previously, a more premium and smaller market. Fine Champagne and luxury Champagne from the top Champagne houses may well be where things are heading.
Champagne sales decreasing
Champagne Brands Market
Even though Champagne sales in general have dropped, they added that the market for the top Champagne brands was relatively stable. Often these are labelled as ‘les grandes marques’ and you would typically associate these with the top Champagne houses like Dom Perignon and Krug.
Another area for growth is for the ‘grower Champagnes’, these are the producers that use grapes that are solely from their own estate. When you buy a personalised Champagne present of ours and select the Premium Champagne, this is produced solely from the estate of my family in Festigny, so this means if you choose to send Champagne online through us you can do so with confidence.
Champagne Gift Market Reaction
The easy reaction is to see the overall figure and see this as bad news for the UK market, however if you look a bit deeper, then the overall picture for the Champagne market in UK and further afield could be a bit healthier.
Glassof bubbly
There is the argument of course, that all the top Champagne brands that supply the fine Champagnes and luxury Champagnes that we all know, are actually growing in a market that is reducing in size.
And as we mentioned earlier, the grower market, although niche, is gaining in momentum, so every time you order a bottle of Champagne and select our Premium range, you are helping contribute to this data.
Champagne Grower Movement
The grower movement was typically associated with sales to hotels and restaurants, and this also applies to our own Champagne. Our family supply to exactly these customers, and their export to Say It With Champers for personalised Champagne presents is the first time they have exported.
The grower movement is useful in that it highlights the products of smaller producers, and serves as a reminder to how fine Champagne is produced. If you want to see images of how the luxury Champagne in your personalised Champagne gift is produced, please click on Our Champagne.
Champagne Present Sales
Champagne sales dipped around the time of the 2008 financial crisis, largely in part due to fine Champagne and luxury Champagne being associated with celebration and possibly also opulence. If people have less money, then unfortunately they are less likely to buy a an expensive luxury item like a bottle of Champagne/
Champagne sales
Price discounting then following in the supermarkets, and this was in part due to the large volumes of stock that were present. This in turn drove the prices down of Champagne in all corners of the market.
This trend is now a thing of the past in the opinion of Hawes, he added that generic Champagne being heavily discounted is now found much less frequently.
He added that own label Champagne still exists but that even these prices were not particularly low. We can assure you that at Say It With Champers we don’t use own label Champagne, our personalised Champagne gifts are provided by Philizot & Fils and Neveux-Rousseau.
Champagne Market
Historically the strength of both the Champagne market has been particularly robust over the years. It managed to continue selling well in the 70’s oil crisis, and also when the stock markets collapsed, and also when Prosecco bottles became popular. Champagne has a prestigious image.
Champagne Sales UK
Interestingly, Champagne accounts for 1/10th of the UK market when it comes to sparkling wine, but in terms of value this rises to 1/3rd. You can see that although trading conditions have been troublesome in the past, Champagne from the top Champagne brands have continued to perform well. In my opinion, a fine Champagne and a luxury Champagne will never fade in popularity, granted it may be an expensive Champagne and not a cheap Champagne, but there will always be a market for it.
Glass of Champagne
Say It With Champers Bubbly
That is not to say however that we will not supply such top Champagne brands for your personalised Champagne birthday gift from ourselves. We will source one for you should you want one, but please bear in mind to give us extra time to source your luxury Champagne, then prepare your personalised Champagngift, and then of course send Champagne by post. Please browse our categories for the perfect alternative gift, or Champagne wedding present or anniversary gift. We are happy to help with any of your questions.