Oettinger Davidoff reveals solid increase in revenue and profitability in 2021

Leading cigar maker Oettinger Davidoff has announced a +8% rise in turnover year-on-year to CHF456.8 million (US$476.8 million) for 2021.

Production increased by +35% “to meet strong market demand”, said the company to a total of 34.1 million sticks, helping Oettinger Davidoff to grow market share in the handmade premium cigar business.

The results came despite a difficult year for the market in Asia in particular, which “remains severely impacted by the collapse of the global travel retail sector”. The market in Europe continues to decline though the US market developed well, said the company.

Turnover in own-brand cigars climbed by +28.9%, boosted by the trend towards high-value brands in the higher priced segment. Davidoff performed especially well, with turnover rising +43.9% year-on-year. The brand was boosted by the introduction of Davidoff Dominicana and Davidoff Limited Editions.

Camacho (up +11.3%) and AVO (up +5%) also registered solid turnover growth. The relaunch of the Zino brand attracted new customers and made a “valuable contribution” to the results.

Turnover development for third-party brands was also encouraging, noted Oettinger Davidoff. Group profitability improved through initiatives taken under the ‘Way Forward’ transformation programme launched in 2018.

The Davidoff brand including its Exclusive Editions helped boost company fortunes in 2021

“The last business year confirmed that Oettinger Davidoff is both resilient and well equipped to operate successfully in a demanding market environment, even in challenging times,” said CEO Beat Hauenstein.

“Despite the many and varied challenges that the COVID pandemic posed – especially along the value chain – we were able to keep our customers unfailingly supplied throughout the year, introduce innovative new products and thanks to our well-cadenced new product launches and our intensified focus on our digital customer engagement meet our customers’ expectations.”

This year, Oettinger Davidoff marks 50 years since it introduced its ‘selective distribution’ system of selling through its own stores or through selected key partners. The company today counts over 700 selected Davidoff appointed merchants around the world, along with 65 Davidoff flagship stores and satellites.

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