Jean-Fredric Hugel, the youngest generation of one of France's most successful wineries, presented their approach to place and branding both in terms of

1. HUGEL & FILS
12 generations of family tradition

2. A brief presentation

Family business, today run by 3 members of
the family (12th generation) – 28 employees

100% family-owned and fully self-financed.

Wine growers from father to son in
Riquewihr, Alsace since 1639

Total annual production averages 110,000
cases; over 90% is exported to more than
110 countries

3. Today’s Hugel headquarters in Riquewihr

4. The importance of the place vs. the
importance of the brand. The secrets
behind a successful wine brand?

5. The importance of the brand and the
importance of the place. The secrets
behind a successful wine brand?

6. Be coherent
Don’t try to become super premium if you
can’t sustain it.
 Don’t try to mass market your wines if you
can’t supply when (if) it’s a success.
 Don’t open a market if you cant sustain
and support it.


Your positioning can only be yours, make
sure it is unique, so it stays yours…

7. Know your strengths:
Our name, because the brand is
important.
 Our capacity and experience in opening
markets.
 Our adaptability to any export market’s
requirement.
 Our ability to build our brand image.

…We have become really good at being first.

8. 1. Our brand:
Our brand is our name, our brand
ambassadors are members of the family.
 Our brand is short and easy to pronounce
in most languages.
 Our label has become a signature across
the world.
 We avoided supermarket and mass
distribution to keep a high end image.


10. 2. Our capacity to open new
markets:
Present in 110 different countries
 Recently opened markets like Vietnam,
Burma, Serbia…
 Present in tradeshows, present on the
field.
 Working with the right people (Frederick
Wildman; Summergate; Jeroboam; John
Fells UK)


11. Establishing stable export markets
Loading a shipment
for Sao Paulo in 1950
The labelling room in 1930

12. 3. Our adaptability to any export
market’s requirement:
We count 3 people working full time on
duties and shipping.
 We count 5 people for labeling, packing
and orders display.
 Hundreds of different labels.
 A method which allows us quick changes
in destination.
 A website in 9 different languages(!)


13. An informative and supportive website

14. The new technologies of
information help us communicate
more easily than ever before.

15. Conclusion:
Know / find your strengths.
 Work on your strong points.
 Chose your distribution wisely.
 Define your goals and tactics.
 Being first is often better than being the
best.
 Try to be both.


17. HUGEL & FILS
3, rue de la première armée
68340 Riquewihr
France
Tel: +33 3 89 47 92 15
Fax: +33 3 89 49 00 10
info@hugel.com