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Majestic: Record weekend for English fizz
UK retailer Majestic recorded its biggest ever weekend for English fizz in the run-up to the Euro 2020 final – as the Scots and Welsh plump for Prosecco.
The retailer saw sales of English fizz rise 65% compared to the same period last year, as the England men’s team prepared to take on Italy in the final. It said that at one point across Majestic’s 150 English-based stores, a bottle of wine grown sparkling wine was being sold every minute.
The sales were a record for the forty year old retailer – however in Scotland and Wales it was Italian-made Prosecco that proved the fizz of choice, with sales up 78%.
Majestic said that there were signs of momentum starting to build behind the UK’s homegrown winemakers, and they were starting to prove they could “take on the best in the world”.
Majestic’s chief commercial Officer Rob Cooke said it was amazing to see more and more customers reach out for something grown in this country to open for such a special occasion, after such an incredible effort from the England team.
“Prosecco still dominates our best-selling list, but in recents years the likes of Chapel Down, Nyetimber and Hambledon have quickly become household names. Of course, this wasn’t quite the celebration many had hoped for – but it just goes to show that English Wine is becoming truly mainstream and accessible for millions of people. And long may that continue”.
New stores
Following its acquisition by Fortress Bank in 2019, the wine specialist has embarked on an ambitious plan to expand its bricks-and-mortar retail estate, with four already opened and sixteen more planned. In the last two weeks it has opened its 201st store in Knutsford last week – the first store in the north of England for almost a decade. According to the retailer, the store sits in an area that is famed for drinking more champagne per head than anywhere else in the country, and has long been a target for the specialist.
Rupert Collis, of property consultancy Fisher German, who was involved in the acquisition, said it was “extremely positive to see a national operator investing in new high street stores in what is an extremely challenging retail market”, noting that the 15-year lease “demonstrated the resilience of Knutsford”.
Majestic has offered customers a year’s supply of wine if they help the specialist find a new location in one of their target towns.