Cognac label LOUIS XIII taps China's expanding market

[Photo provided to China Daily]

What changes have happened to the structure of the global wine and spirits industry?

High-end business is more balanced than it was in the past. China is still a key country, but our business is now healthier with regions such as the US or some countries in Southeast Asia growing quickly.

We have had to adapt our business model to the new Chinese landscape, being more client centric than in the past. LOUIS XIII is very well equipped to lead the change and the opening of the boutique proves it. We have the ability to know all our clients one-by-one and to build a great dialogue with them.

For your perusal, we launched a few month ago our first e-commerce global initiative in the luxury section of JD.com. It is the time to create innovative interactions and bespoke experiences to enable our clients to live and feel the soul of LOUIS XIII.

Lastly, in our business, we can see a growing demand for crafted products, a great opportunity for us, as this is what we do since 1874 and before thanks to the genius of a man named Paul Emile Rémy Martin. The taste of LOUIS XIII remains the same since its creation. It is a true act of genius.

What are these current challenges that your brand is facing?

Worldwide, our challenge is to increase our qualitative awareness. This will help develop our business as once you taste our product and know about our history and know-how, you are conquered.

In China, our awareness is great but there is also a lot to do to enhance what makes us so unique. So it is more about qualitative awareness, as opposed to quantitative. There is a lot to say about our authenticity, our values, the way we master time, and of course the unique taste of our cognac.

Our other challenge is to reinvent the way we talk and engage with our clients. This is what I call the client-centric model that LOUIS XIII can probably implement more deeply than other brands.