Lanson Champagne owner Boizel Chanoine Champagne has reported profits down by more than a fifth in 2009, hit by discounting and consumers switching to cheaper bottles.

Net profits for the 12 months of 2009 fell by nearly 22% to EUR16m (US$21.6m), compared to EUR20.5m in 2008, Boizel Chanoine Champagne (BCC) said today (24 March).

Earnings before interest and tax fell by 24%, to EUR38m, while operating margins slipped from 16.8% in 2008 to 14% in 2009 as retailer promotions and discounting drove down price per bottle in the firm’s major markets.

Still, sales for the year fell by 8% to EUR276m, outperforming an average 17% drop in value sales across the Champagne sector during the same period.
 
This, together with a prediction that Champagne sector volume sales will again break the 300m bottles barrier in 2010, saw Boizel Chanoine’s share price rise by more than 5% today.

“The overstocking still seen at the start of 2009 in the global distribution channels has, to a great extent, been cleared, enabling a better fit now between shipments and consumption,” said the company.

But, the firm was less clear on its own projected performance for 2010.

“In view of continued economic uncertainties, it is not possible to provide forward-looking data,” it said.

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