It was in a driven spirit of conquest and victory that Intersud presented their strategy yesterday for the coming ten years before a large audience of journalists and professionals. Gérard Bertrand, head of the Promotion Commission summed up an ambitious objective: “we must create a virtuous circle of win, win, win for the producers, the distributors, and the consumers. This cultural change will involve starting from the market and thinking in terms of demand marketing”

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To come up with this strategy, Intersud consulted expert advisors who have specialists in the market; Ernst & Young for France, Sopexa for North America and Wine Intelligence for the key European markets (Great Britain and the Benelux countries) as well as Japan.

Each research company endeavoured to identify the current strengths of the umbrella brand Sud de France. Qualitative and quantitative go hand in hand. The consultants proceeded to interview panels of professionals and carry out surveys amongst wine consumers (questionnaires, focus groups, interviews) in order to divine the expectations of the market.

All the consulted companies insist upon the importance of establishing this strategy for the medium and the long term.

The notoriety of the wines from Languedoc-Roussillon varies greatly from one market to another, but one does find the same distinguishing factors:

- the volume (first wine region in the world to have over 15 million hectolitres of production potential),
- the variety in the range of wines (vins de pays, grape varieties, AOC, still wines and sparkling wines, fortified wines),
- the image of accessible products and often innovative ones
- and lastly the favourable preconception of the Mediterranean way of life.

In France, Sud de France has to play the New World’s card of always bringing out more modern and innovative products (like R&D Agropolis pole in Montpellier). This will be its natural territory, an area which will not be fought with other wine producing regions.
The Sud de France brand is positioned at the heart of the market for premium and super premium and iconic wines. The wines of the “basic” segment, being those below 2€ per bottle, do not fall under the banner of Sud de France.

The strategic plan foresees a ambitious rise in sales in volume and in value. For France: from 1.5 to 2.7 million hl and from 700 million to 2 billion euros in ten years. And in exports: from 2.2 to 4.7 million hl and from 950 million to 2.5 billion euros.

To reach this target, the directors of Intersud are fully aware that they have to provide adequate means to meet their expectations. There will have to be an established medium-long term progression; one year on its own will not be enough! Intersud will therefore devote 15M€ over three years according the importance of the markets.

To win a war you need soldiers: Intersud therefore has recruited 20 people, half of which will be in marketing. Amongst those are market projet managers, based in the various countries, who will serve as a contact on the ground.