Ragnaud Sabourin only produces 30 to 40 thousand bottles per year. That’s not a lot. At the same time, the Cognac house is well known in the world of eaux-de-vie, in famous restaurants and among connoisseurs.
The 33 hectare property of Ragnaud Sabourin lies in the area of Grande Champagne with a family tradition wich has lasted over a century. But unfortunately things change for smaller producers like S-R, as competition in the market is rough.
40% of the sales are realized in France, a market which gets more and more difficult – and 60% of the bottles are exported. Unfortunately the Cognac house had to experience a declining revenue in 2009 (-25%!) because a key client from Russia did not buy as much as expected.
Now the rumor has it that the Sabourins want to sell – but that kind of gossip quickly spreads in good old Charente. The owners guarantee they have no intention of selling.
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Ragnaud Sabourin reacts to financial problems
What this family company needs now is a working distribution network and a coherent communication policy with a clear focus on the core targetgroup of the great Cognac Ragnaud Sabourin. The whole family is trying to cope with the topic but it remains difficult.
As a first step the Cognac house hired winemaker Pascal Dagnaud, a new ‘maître de chai‘ (cellarmaster) and a relatevily young salesperson is supposed to be hired soon. The bottle design also was rebranded by young designer Alexandra Chassant from Jarnac: New packaging, presentation and appearence of the brand shall help sales.
Extended product line
The Cognac house now even markets small vintage bottles of 88′, 89′ and 90′ – and now offers a very special bottle at 1500 €. This limited edition is called ‘Héritage Ragnaud’ and is supposed to underline the high quality of their products.
Source: Charente Libre
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4 Comments
eg er glad i cognac og sigarer lang type
(translation: I love Cognac and long Cigars)
When there is no more master blender and a bad “Grande Champagne” mentality from this house. It is without any surprise to see facts turn into result.
Why would you say that? Okay, they have been relying a bit too much on their export sales but come on, it’s a small family-run company, and their blending used to be better, the management in general wasn’t the best etc. but they are tying.. do you want the Hennessys of this world to take over the whole market, so that there are only 10 cognac brands left in the end?
Where can I purchase some in the US?