Champagnes Henriot poised to join Nicolas Feuillatte, Castelnau and Abelé

he holding company Artémis Domaines, owned by the Pinault family, has signed an exclusive negotiation agreement with Terroirs et Vignerons de Champagne (TEVC) to sell Henriot Champagnes. The Pinault family's holding company (Kering luxury group: Balenciaga, Boucheron, Gucci, Saint Laurent...) bought the Henriot family group’s brands on September 30, 2022. The brands include negociant company Bouchard in Burgundy, Domaine William Fèvre in Chablis and Beaux Frères in Oregon. The group has chosen to prioritise Champagne Jacquesson after buying all of the company’s shares in January this year. The probable acquisition is likely to be completed in the second half of 2023.

TEVC is Champagne’s leading group of co-operative wineries, with a total 6,000 member growers farming 2,750 hectares under vine across 82 co-operatives. The group was established at the end of 2021 after the Centre Vinicole Nicolas Feuillate (CV-NF) and the Coopérative Régionale des Vins de Champagne (CRVC) merged. In 2021, the Centre Vinicole Nicolas Feuillatte sold 12 million bottles generating €206.8 million in pre-tax revenue. The TEVC group is allegedly targeting turnover of €280 million in 2022, through Nicolas Feuillatte (11.2 million bottles sold annually), Castelnau (450,000 bottles/year) and Abelé (130,000 bottles/year) Champagnes, as well as 3 million bottles under its own brands and 6 million bottles returned to members.

“After receiving and examining several purchase offers, Artémis Domaines chose TEVC, which offers the best guarantees for perpetuating the expertise of this iconic Champagne company”, says a press release, stressing that “the transaction will be subject to the customary regulatory authorisations”.