“Many of our products sold better than last year. Trei Hectare (up 20 percent), Conu Alecu, Zaraza and Lacrima lui Ovidiu (up 60 percent) registered the most important increase in sales,” Murfatlar’s Brand Manager, Daniel Negrescu, told Business Standard.
The domestic wine market is worth some €450 million. Murfatlar, has a market share in terms of volume of 27.8 percent, followed by Jidvei, with 14.5 percent, Cotnari, with 13.1 percent, and Vincon, 7.8 percent, all of these main wine producers, according to Wine Exporters and Producers Association (APEV).
Wine sales drop naturally in summer. White wines sold better than red ones, owing to the fact that they can be mixed with soda water, according to Negrescu.
Murfatlar closed the year 2006 with €36 million worth of business, while 2007 estimates amount to some €42 million. The company intends to increase wine exports by 20 percent. Some 20 percent of last year’s production was exported to the US, Israel, Spain, Italy, Finland, Denmark and China.
To date, company sales were mainly oriented to the domestic market, meeting some 27.8 percent of Romania’s wine consumption, while exports account for only one percent of the company’s business, according to APEV. “The main objective was reaching and strengthening a leadership position on the domestic market,” said Daniel Negrescu.
Murfatlar exploits some 2,600 hectares of vineyard and produces an annual 15 million liters. The Murfatlar brands include Rai de Murfatlar, Sec de Murfatlar, Lacrima lui Ovidiu, Premiat, Zaraza and Conu Alecu.
Average annual domestic wine consumption amounts to some 27 liters, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics (INS). Worldwide wine consumption in 2006 reached some 240.8 million hectoliters, 1.4 percent more year-on-year, according to the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV). The highest annual wine consumption is in France, at 32.8 million hectoliters - 55 liters per capita.
