AXA, one of Europe's largest insurance groups, and Groupe Frey, a
family-owned Champagne producer, are making a joint bid to buy two of
the Champagne brands most popular in America, Perrier-Jouet and G.H.
Mumm.
Both brands are currently owned by Seagram, the Montreal-based drinks
and entertainment giant. Seagram stated that it had entered into negotiations
with the Societe Financiere des Vins de Champagne, jointly owned by
AXA and Groupe Frey, to sell Mumm and Perrier-Jouet, each of which
sells about 100,000 cases annually in the United States.
Seagram, a publicly traded company, made its first announcement about the
pending sale two weeks ago, but it did not reveal the potential suitors at the
time. Though Seagram is seeking to sell Perrier-Jouet and Mumm, the
company plans to retain the lucrative worldwide distribution rights for the
two brands.
Groupe Frey owns the Germain and Binet Champagne brands, while AXA,
through its AXA-Millesime subsidiary, owns the Sauternes estate Chateau
Suduiraut, chateaus Pichon-Longueville-Lalande, Pibran and
Cantenac-Brown in Bordeaux and the Quinta do Noval Port Estate.
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