Current Operating Profit totalled €199.5 million, down 15.3% on a reported basis, while the current operating margin came out at 27.1%, compared with 30.4% the previous year. Although the gross margin rose by one percentage point, structure costs and increased communication investment to support the autumn 2019 launch of the new Rémy Martin Team Up for Excellence campaign weighed on profitability.

LIQUEURS & SPIRITS

The Liqueurs & Spirits division was down 3.0% in the year on an organic basis (down 1.0% on a reported basis). Changes in the distribution network in Europe and the impact of the pandemic on the business in the Asia-Pacific region in the fourth quarter masked very strong performance in the United States, buoyed by the success of Cointreau, The Botanist and the Group’s portfolio of single malt whiskies.

Current Operating Profit totalled €37.5 million, down 3.5% on a reported basis, while the current operating margin came in at 14.3% (down 0.4 percentage point), hit by declining volumes and continued strategic investment.

PARTNER BRANDS

As expected, Partner Brand sales fell sharply in the year (down 68.7% on an organic basis and 68.5% on a reported basis) with the termination of major distribution contracts in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the United States.

As a result, Current Operating Profit came in at negative €1.7 million, compared with positive €4.9 million in the year to 31 March 2019.