Champagne Gardet reveals Asia expansion plans
At Prowine Singapore 2026, Champagne Gardet owner and president Christophe Prieux outlined the Champagne house’s strategy in Southeast Asia. Nimmi Malhotra reports.
At this year’s Prowine Singapore, which took place from 21-24 April, the Champagne Lounge was the busiest corner of the show. Between morning masterclasses by Singapore’s Champagne expert, Yeo Xi Yang, and guided tastings in the afternoon, the pours rarely stopped.
Champagne Gardet was among the houses present, and catching Christophe Prieux, owner and president, for a conversation required a degree of patience.
The family-owned Champagne house was founded in 1895 by Charles Gardet in Épernay and later moved to the premier cru village of Chigny-les-Roses in the Montagne de Reims region. Christophe Prieux acquired the house with the intention of maintaining and upgrading production quality while preserving the family ethos. Today, Champagne Gardet owns more than seven hectares of premier cru vineyards in the Chigny-les-Roses, Ludes, and Rilly-la-Montagne areas, supplemented by fruit sourced from grapes across the region. Annual production stands close to one million bottles.
Almost two-thirds of its production is exported to 30 countries. “The top three export countries are the UK, North America and Japan,” said Prieux. But like much of the category, Gardet has not been immune to headwinds. Champagne sales and exports have declined in recent years, and the impact of US tariffs further complicated trading conditions in 2024.
New markets
Against that backdrop, new markets take on a new significance, which explains Prieux’s presence at Prowine Singapore.
Gardet expanded its Asian footprint to incorporate Singapore four years ago and is now using the city-state as a gateway into Southeast Asia. “We recently secured a distributor in Thailand. Next, we’re looking to expand in Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam,” Prieux said. Taiwan, yet another premium Champagne market, is also on the radar. “East Asia at the moment is growing,” he added.
While markets like Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan are modest in volume compared to Japan, Prieux is pragmatic about what they offer in return. In Japan, Gardet sells its entire range, including entry-level cuvées like the Tradition series, at what Prieux describes as a “normal” average price. But in Singapore and neighbouring markets, the appetite skews noticeably towards premium. “The Singapore market is interested in trying the higher-end range of wines and vintages. It’s a better average price here as compared to Japan,” he explained.
That premium positioning plays to Gardet’s strength. In markets like Singapore, where grower Champagne has become a near-obsession among sommeliers and wine enthusiasts, Prieux’s family Champagne comfortably sits between big houses and growers.
“We are not a grower; we are not a big house. We are a family house,” he declared, before revealing practices and values that closely align the label with grower practices.
“In our range, we produce Gardet Blanc de Noir Premier Cru (60% Pinot Noir, 40% Pinot Meunier) from a mono-parcel – only one village, just like a grower would do. We respect the village and the cru, just like a grower would do.”
For Champagne buyers and sommeliers across Asia, Champagne Gardet is one of the names to track as the region’s premium tier continues to grow.
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