TIBURON, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tiburon based First Growth Brands Inc. and its champagne brand Faire La Fête® is growing fast. Little known until recently, Faire La Fête® sales have grown over 620% since mid-2019, the number of outlets has expanded from a few hundred to nearly 3,000, and the brand can be found in every major metro market in the country. In January of this year only, sales grew by over 750% versus last year.
Top locations such as Michael Mina’s Bungalo Kitchen in Tiburon, the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles and Bobby Van’s in New York are serving Faire La Fête® by-the-glass. And it has become the #1 French Sparkling in the sub $50 category in Albertsons-Vons-Pavilions, the 2nd-largest grocery chain by market share in Southern California.
Speaking from the company’s frugal headquarters above the Boardwalk shopping center in downtown Tiburon, First Growth Brands CEO Edward Holl said, “Over the past two decades, cheap Prosecco became the dominant imported sparkling in the US, with its lead brand La Marca selling as much as the entire Champagne region combined. That’s because the average American can’t afford the $50 entry price, or $28 by the glass price, of French champagne. So, they turned to Prosecco.”
”We decided to do something about that,” Holl continues. ”Our consumers love France and all things French, and we’re giving it back to them with hand-harvested champagne, among the highest quality with half the sugar of tank-fermented Prosecco, at 1/3 the price. With our consumers, it’s just no contest.”
Contributing to the brand’s ability to avoid stock shortages this year is the bond that First Growth has forged with the farmers in Limoux, who now see their 500-year champagne history displayed across the U.S. “This will undoubtedly become America’s biggest French sparkling,” said First Growth director Andy Gibson, formerly the head of marketing for Bacardi and Fosters.
Former global head of sales for Diageo and Johnnie Walker, Ron Anderson, has also joined First Growth as a director and shareholder and said, “In my forty years, rarely have I seen a brand with as many built in characteristics for success as this has.”
When asked why Faire La Fête® is headquartered in Tiburon, Marin County, Holl responded, “that’s easy. I live here and walk to work. It’s a beautiful place, and goes well with our beautiful product.” And what’s next for the brand? “We aim to be Number 3 in French champagne by the end of next year, by putting everyday champagne joy into the hearts of many more.”
About Faire La Fête
Faire La Fête, which is French for “to throw a party”, first introduced in the U.S. in 2015 and is distributed across major metro markets by Southern Glazers Wine & Spirits. Faire La Fête is France’s answer to making champagne affordable again by offering consumers the same traditional quality of $60+ Champagnes at a third of the price. Faire La Fête is produced by First Growth Brands in Limoux, France, the birthplace of sparkling wine in 1531. Sustainably hand-harvested, bottle aged, and half the sugar of tank-fermented Prosecco, Faire La Fête is convincing American consumers who love French champagne but couldn’t afford it for daily celebration, that they now can.
