For drinks group Pernod Ricard, the Covid crisis seems to be entirely in the past. Thanks to the United States and China, the company posted better-than-expected figures and surpassed its pre-pandemic levels.
“Emerging stronger from the crisis”
The spirits group, known for brands such as Absolut, Havana Club, Jameson, Martell, Mumm and Perrier-Jouët, was able to boost sales by almost 5 % to 8.8 billion euros in its 2020-2021 financial year. Excluding exchange rate effects, organic growth was even close to 10 %. According to the group, this means that it is already doing better than it did in 2019. Net profit even tripled, although this was partly due to one-off factors.
Pernod Ricard set record figures in the US and China, particularly: Covid measures eased at a somewhat faster pace in these markets. In Europe, growth was slightly more modest at around 4 %. The drinks producer recognises that the transformation strategy launched in 2018 is yielding results: Pernod Ricard is investing in priority brands and markets, is betting more heavily on e-commerce and is accelerating its sustainability strategy.
Consequently, CEO Alexandre Ricard is confident that his company’s strong sales momentum should continue into the 2021-2022 financial year, particularly in a very dynamic first quarter. “Thanks to our solid foundation, our teams and our brand portfolio, we will emerge stronger from this crisis.”
