Cognac sales slump for Moët Hennessey in Q1

By Hamish Graham

Published: 15 April, 2025

Data released from parent company LVMH shows that its wine and spirits division Moët Hennessey has seen a year on year drop in revenue when comparing to Q1 2025 to Q1 2024, driven by a poor performance for its cognac and spirits brands. The luxury goods giant believes this revenue fall is partly due to the ongoing ripple effects of tariff uncertainty.

Organic revenue for Moët Hennessy declined by 9% year on year in Q1 2025, with this figure dropping from around €1.42bn to €1.31bn. The Q1 performance represents the fifth consecutive quarter of overall revenue decline. In fact, last year’s total revenue was down over €700m compared to 2023, dropping from approximately €6.60bn to €5.86bn.

The fall in the first three months of 2025 was mainly due to a 17% decline in cognac and spirits revenue, with Q1 revenue deflating by over €100m compared to the same period last year for the category, from €736m to €629m. LVMH blamed soft demand in the US and China, as well as uncertainties fomented by tariffs for the poor spirits returns.

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Champagne and wines faired more positively with organic growth in Q1 2025 dropping only by 1% when compared to Q1 2024. The diverging performance means Champagne and spirits accounted for the majority of Moët Hennessy’s revenue in Q1 (€676m) when compared to cognac and spirits (€629m), a reverse of fortunes compared to the same three months last year.

LVMH believes that the more stable showing for the Champagne and wines category is due to factors including the return of Moët & Chandon to the podium as the official Champagne of Formula 1 and the strident performance of Provence rosé wines. Rosé wines are becoming an increasingly important part of the group’s still wine category as revealed by Claudia Bastiaensen, head of wines at Moët Hennessy UK, in Harpers’ April issue.

These Moët Hennessy results play out amid a 3% drop in organic revenue in Q1 for LVMH, as luxury goods face challenges in an uncertain global economic climate.

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