UK – Pernod Ricard, a leading global spirits and wine company, has reported a 1 percent organic decline in net sales for the fiscal year 2024, ending June 30.
The decline was primarily driven by significant challenges in two of its largest markets, the United States and China.
In the United States, sales dropped by 9 percent as retailers and wholesalers reduced their purchases of high-end bottles due to decreased consumer demand.
Similarly, Chinese sales fell by 10 percent, with the company attributing the decline to an economic downturn that negatively impacted consumer confidence.
Despite these setbacks, Pernod Ricard highlighted strong performance in many mature and emerging markets, which helped offset the challenges in the U.S. and China.
India emerged as a bright spot for the company, with a 6 percent increase in sales, driven by robust consumer demand and mid-single digit growth in price/mix.
However, the French spirits giant faced a 35 percent drop in net income, falling to just under 1.48 billion euros (US$1.64B), while operating profit decreased by 7 percent to nearly 3.12 billion euros (US$3.46B), reflecting a 1.5 percent organic growth.
By brand, Jameson continued its international expansion, while Absolut Vodka showed strong growth in Asia and Europe.
On the other hand, Scotch sales were negatively impacted by the challenges in the U.S. and China.
Chairman and CEO Alexandre Ricard said: “Pernod Ricard achieved robust results for the fiscal year ending June 2024 within an environment of economic and geopolitical uncertainty and spirits market normalisation after two years of exceptional post-pandemic growth.
Our global scale, our agility and our portfolio of brands, the most extensive in the industry, combined with our capacity to understand and to invest behind our consumers’ desires and aspirations puts us in a very strong position to navigate these challenges.”
Looking ahead, Pernod Ricard anticipates a soft first quarter in 2025 due to ongoing U.S. inventory adjustments and a weak macroeconomic context in China but expects a return to sales growth in other markets.
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