More proof that Brexit was a real disaster for Britain was published last week. Reuters reports that the drop in the value of the pound will hit Champagne drinkers who face higher prices next year as the impact of the shock Brexit vote on the British pound takes its toll, champagne industry executives warned.
“The market in Britain is undergoing a period of adjustment. The brands have not yet factored in the effect of foreign exchange rates on their prices,” said Charles-Armand de Belenet, marketing director for Pernod Ricard’s Martell Mumm Perrier-Jouët champagne brand.
French champagne industry executives told Reuters that while they had managed to offset the Brexit impact to an extent this year, with some firms delaying price rises, they would have to raise prices in Britain in 2017 to protect their profit margins.
Taittinger head Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger said his company had had a “good year, even in England,” but Bollinger executive Jerome Philipon warned champagne drinkers of higher prices next year.
“The major brands will have to hike their prices from January onwards. But one price hike still won’t compensate for the hits from the exchange rate,” he said.
France exported 150.7 million bottles of champagne in 2015, worth 2.64 billion euros (2.24 billion pounds), according to an industry group. Britain accounted for nearly 23 percent of France’s champagne exports by volume in 2015, equivalent to 34.2 million bottles.
