PARIS, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Remy Cointreau's new boss on Thursday said the French spirits group is confident of returning to growth in its fiscal second half after cost cuts saw first-half operating profit fall less than feared, cushioning lower sales in the U.S. and China.
The maker of Remy Martin cognac and Cointreau liqueur reiterated full-year sales and profit targets, after it cut its goals last month citing deteriorating market conditions in China and a weaker-than-expected rebound in U.S. sales.
New chief executive and luxury veteran Franck Marilly, who took over in June, said in a statement: "The first half of the year was challenging, but it marks the start of a new era for Remy Cointreau."
"Despite a persistently tough environment, we remain confident in our ability to return to growth in the second half."
Marilly gave several clues on ways to drive the group's performance, citing the need to adapt Remy's organisation, rebalance commercial resources, reevaluate investment to focus resources on top priorities as well as "enhancing price agility while staying true to our value-driven strategy".
Sales have slumped in Remy Cointreau's critical U.S. and Chinese markets in recent years, forcing multiple guidance downgrades and the scrapping of medium-term sales targets.
The entire spirits sector has suffered as a sales boom seen after the COVID-19 pandemic went into reverse, more recently exacerbated by tariffs on cognac imports in China and on EU goods entering the United States.
But Remy, which makes 70% of its sales from cognac, mostly in the U.S. and China, has suffered more than its peers.
Remy reported operating profit of 108.7 million euros ($126.11 million) for the first six months of the fiscal year 2025/26, which ends March 31.
This marked a like-for-like fall of 13.6%, which was not as steep as average expectations of an 18.1% decline in a company-compiled poll of 14 analysts.
It confirmed a previously reported 4.2% like-for-like sales drop for the first half, to 489.6 million euros.
Remy Cointreau reiterated it now expects organic sales growth for the full-year 2025/2026 to range between stable and low-single-digit.
It also expects an organic decline in annual current operating profit of between low-double-digit and mid-teens.
Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Alessandro Parodi and Christopher Cushing
Source: Reuters