At €6.3 billion, Champagne sales scale new heights

n 2023, Champagne shipped 299 million bottles of wine worth 6.3 billion euros, according to data released on January 15 by the Champagne wine marketing board (CIVC). The figures show a drop of 8.2 % by volume and no change in values compared with record sales in 2022, which have already been beaten. According to the CIVC, they mark a return to a “regular momentum, after three exceptional years” following the end of the pandemic and global thirst for Champagne. “After 297.3 million bottles in 2019, sales plummeted by 18% at the height of Covid then bounced back by 33% over two years to exceed 325 million bottles at the end of 2022”, explains the marketing board, which points to the premiumisation trend illustrated by the stability of value sales.

“The drop was expected but, with revenue unchanged, the Champagne region remains optimistic for the future, even though Champagne wines are sensitive to the geopolitical situation and changes in the global economy”, highlighted David Chatillon, chairman of the Champagne trade organisation UMC and co-chairman of the CIVC, in a press statement. Maxime Toubart, chairman of the Champagne growers’ organisation SGV and co-chairman of the CIVC, said he was delighted the situation “had reverted back to normal”, adding that the remit of “an appellation produced within a limited area and complying with strict rules […] does not support strong volume growth over the long term”.

Last year, Champagne once again sold 57% of its wines in export markets – equating to 172 million bottles (-8.2%) – and 43% in the domestic market (127 million bottles, -8.2%). According to the CIVC, the decline in sales can be partially ascribed to “over-stocking by distributors in 2022 who were afraid of a shortage”.