Joint Interview

What will you remember about 2023?
Marie-Amélie de Leusse: It was an eventful year, and sometimes a turbulent one. This wasn’t a first in Rémy Cointreau’s long history, and we are well equipped for uncertain times like these. Our corporate culture, our strategic vision and the passion of our teams, which I would like to acknowledge here, are our greatest assets as to continue and strengthen our growth.

Éric Vallat: After 3 years of very sustained growth, we encountered some unexpected difficulties in our various markets. In China, we were expecting a post-Covid recovery, which didn’t materialise. In the United States, we were impacted by a sharp normalization of consumption, inflation and the boom in Ready-to-Drink beverages. The rise in interest rates, and hence the cost of money, has also led our distributors to continue to reduce inventory. Only Europe has shown some resilience. In this particularly complex environment, we reacted very quickly, adapting our cost structure and asking our teams around the world to make major efforts. I would like to thank them for their responsiveness and sense of initiative.

Haven’t these difficulties affected the Group’s strategy?
Éric Vallat: We are convinced that our value strategy remains the right one, even if inflation dented our customers’ purchasing power in 2023. It is consistent with the underlying trend to drink less but better, and with our well-balanced portfolio of top-of-the-range and exceptional brands. We thus continued to invest in our brands in 2023, which have become much more visible and well known in recent years. As we know, today’s desirability determines tomorrow’s sales. An exceptional brand is based on 3 essential pillars: quality (the rational); desirability (the emotional), and, finally, the customer experience. This is a real challenge in a business with lots of middlemen, where we don’t sell directly to the end customer. On the other hand, e-commerce offers us a new opportunity to engage in direct dialogue with our customers. In China, it now accounts for 25% of our turnover. In addition, with LOUIS XIII, we have developed unique retail expertise.

How do you reconcile agility with long-term thinking?
Marie-Amélie de Leusse: By drawing on the strength of our roots!
This year we’re celebrating the tercentenary of the Maison Rémy Martin, a long-prepared event. This is a very important moment for us, embodied in the reopening of the historic house in Cognac and the creation of a new visitors’ tour. Throughout 2024, this celebration will be an essential time for sharing, with our teams, our customers and our partner winegrowers.

Has progress been made with the Group’s CSR roadmap this year?
Éric Vallat: Environmental concerns are at the heart of our DNA. Taking care of our terroirs, as we have done for three hundred years, means ensuring that it is passed on to future generations in good health. We have thus continued with the roll-out of our transformation plan, “Sustainable exception”, and our efforts have been recognised. Rémy Cointreau was rated A in the “Climate” and “Water” categories and “Leader” in the “Suppliers” category at the 2024 CDP Europe Awards. Westland received B Corp certification this year and it was renewed for PHD Malts. Telmont doesn’t compromise to place environmental protection at the heart of everything it does. The expertise of Hautes Glaces, a pioneer in sustainability and eco-design, had enabled us to take a fresh look at our practices. Lastly, we are continuing with the conversion of our estates to agroecology. At Rémy Martin, we are also on track with our road map, with almost half of our partner winegrowers certified.

What are your priorities now?
Marie-Amélie de Leusse: I would like to pay particular attention, with the senior management team, to keep our teams motivated around our strategic plan, which takes us into the future. Our employees are very proud to perpetuate a magnificent heritage. I have every confidence in their capacity for innovation and constant renewal, to carry our values of excellence ever further.

Éric Vallat: We’ve been through a challenging year that has forced us to make some difficult decisions. But these decisions will enable us to maintain our value strategy in a macroeconomic environment that remains unfavourable. We will continue to innovate and implement targeted actions aimed at customers, whose buying patterns we know increasingly well. And when the economic recovery comes, we’ll be ready and well positioned. Recent events have also confirmed our belief that we need to win over new regions to prepare for the future: Southern Europe, India, Africa and South America. This geographical expansion will take time, but will contribute to a more balanced and sustainable growth.