With rising global demand for smaller, more distinctive brands that reflect a particular “terroir” (the unique combination of climate and soil composition that gives a wine its character), ever more of France’s grape growers are deciding to produce their own Champagne for export. This represents a major shift in an industry where some 15,000 grape growers have traditionally provided the better part of their harvest to major houses like M�et & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Laurent Perrier, Nicolas Feuillatte, and Pommery, among others, which together control some 70 percent of production and 97 percent of sales outside Europe.

Rather than a cause for civil war, Dr Charters sees this shift as an opportunity to bring grape growers and Champagne houses together for a fruitful dialogue about the future of the industry. To this end, he has created a new course entitled “Champagne’s Future Leaders” which will be offered at Reims Management School (RMS) starting at the end of this month.

“The Champenois know very well what makes their wine special. We want to help them understand in greater depth how it fits into a changing world of wine and how to maintain that ‘specialness’, and we want to give them a chance to reflect on how their industry can best manage itself for a successful future,” said Charters.

The course, offered in French and targeted equally to grape growers and professionals from France’s Champagne houses, will be held over 10 one-and-a-half day sessions from May 2007 through June 2008. Tuition for the course is 5,500 euros. Upon successful completion of the programme, students will receive a certificate and will be considered eligible to apply for MBA programmes offered by RMS.

The course has three key objectives. First, to provide participants with a global and international understanding of the issues faced by the profession. Second, to equip professionals with the skills required to ensure effective development of their Champagne-related businesses and projects. And finally, and through the process of training and sharing of experiences, to form the Champagne industry’s future leaders.

The ten sessions will combine Champagne- and wine-specific topics with more general, practical business education. Some of the topics on offer include Evolution of the Global Wine Market, Profit Factors in the Champagne Sector, Brand Management, Human Resources and Productivity, and Information Systems and Technology.
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