Champagne's 2020 exports lowest this century, but decline only half that originally forecast
Champagne exports are predicted to fall by 18% for 2020, 50 million fewer bottles than the previous year, but only half the decline that was originally forecast.
The official figures from the Comite Champagne will not be released until next week, but data for the 12 months to the end of November indicate that the total figure for the year will amount to around 246m bottles, which would make 2020 the year with the lowest exports so far this century, with the previous lowest being 293m bottles in 2009, precipitated by the financial crisis the previous year.
The decrease for 2020 is much less pronounced than originally anticipated, when industry watchers were expecting a decline in demand by as much as a third, or 100m bottles for the full year.
The Champagne market has been particularly hard hit by the Covid pandemic, as the hospitality sector largely closed down and parties and other celebratory events were cancelled or postponed. Another big negative effect on Champagne consumption has been the massive reduction in the travel retail sector due to the coronavirus.
But it’s not just the export market which has been hit. The domestic market which accounts for almost half of Champagne's total sales has been particularly weak in 2020. In the 11 months to November, the French market dropped as many as 26m bottles, which means that the decline in the domestic market alone accounts for over half of the total decline for Champagne.
On the positive side, sales of premium branded Champagne have been “astonishing” in the UK according to chairman of the Champagne Agents Association Andrew Hawes. This has come as a surprise to the industry as the restrictions on socialising over Christmas and the New Year in the UK were tightened up in an attempt to control the spread of the virus, with separate households banned from mixing.