Cobra Meets Clicquot

Last year’s drinks business awards brought two very different industry figures together. The result? A meeting of minds in Reims, where a lager producer and a Champagne house found they had more in common than db award trophies

At the presentation of last year’s drinks business awards, the heads of two very different drinks brands were brought together when Veuve Clicquot’s Cécile Bonnefond won Woman of the Year and Cobra’s Karan Bilimoria took Man of the Year.

Recognising an opportunity, Bonnefond suggested a meeting with Bilimoria immediately after they were both recognised for their achievements. The headquarters of the iconic Champagne brand in Reims was chosen as the venue for this unconventional meeting of minds, and all that remained was to set a date. Running Cobra and Veuve Clicquot are both time-consuming tasks, and six months elapsed before Cobra’s management team travelled to France to discover that these two brands have more in common than either expected.For a start, both Bilimoria and Bonnefond were 27 years old when they began work on what are now two well-known names in the industry. Both brands have been built by individuals known for their perseverence and entrepreneurial spirit – traits that contributed to their recognition by the drinks business in 2006.The time that the two teams spent together were characterised by brainstorming sessions and inspiring discussions. Bringing together the sales and marketing directors from each company revealed even more parallels, and broadened the scope of the discussion. In terms of markets, both companies have links with Asia, as Cobra has its roots in India, and Veuve Clicquot was exporting Champagne to India in 1777, even before the UK became an export market. A dinner at the Champagne house’s headquarters provided an opportunity to taste a number of Champagnes, followed by a tasting of King Cobra, the Cobra product with the most similarities to Veuve Clicquot. King Cobra is a  premium offering that is similar to Champagne in terms of its packaging, as well as its double fermentation.Both teams were able to learn a significant amount from each other. Particularly inspiring for the Cobra team was the emphasis placed by Veuve Clicquot on adding value to avoid price promotion and ensuring price consistency across markets. This is achieved through items such as ice buckets and bottle sleeves. The Cobra team acknowledged the extensive and focused distribution of Veuve Clicquot in the on-trade, realising that King Cobra would also benefit from this kind of emphasis.

An international beer brand and a famous Champagne house will undoubtedly be changed, even if only marginally, by this unusual encounter. The fact that Bonnefond and Bilimoria recognised this opportunity at all goes a long way to explain their respective successes.

© db April 2007