Accueil . Acquisition of stakes and investments in wine-growing areas

Acquisition of shareholdings & equity investments in the wine industry

New opportunities for equity investments in wine estates

Since 2022, wine estate transactions have been particularly buoyant, with Wine Objectives assisting with more than twenty sales in the south-eastern regions (Provence, Languedoc and Rhône Valley). Some of these transactions have changed the dynamics of the major appellations in Provence and the Rhône Valley and contributed to a market consolidation, while other more discreet transactions, have found buyers among private investors motivated by wine-growing projects.

A context that influences investment in vineyards in France

Since June 2024, the date of a sensational dissolution with uncertain political and economic consequences, investors, like the majority of French people, have been cautious or reluctant to act. Foreign players are no exception. The international situation has reinforced a sense of caution. Every crisis is an opportunity for change, and one of the unexpected effects has been a new approach to investment in the wine industry.

Investing in a wine estate : M&A or land acquisition?

Although rural law provides a very specific framework in France, wine estates are businesses like any other. Special structures (GFA, GFR, GFV, SCI) allow land and property ownership to be shared among several partners, often family members. These companies own most of the value constituted by wine-growing and real estate assets. However, wine-growing land loses its value if it is not farmed: this is where purely agricultural companies (SCEA, EARL) or more traditional commercial companies come into play, often through a lease (farm lease, rental lease, availability lease or grape supply lease) to cultivate and/or vinify and/or distribute the estate's wines. These same companies may also own the land and property assets directly, but this is rarer in the traditional agricultural landscape. It is common for wine-producing companies to present balanced accounts, while profits are more evident in the balance sheets and income statements of the companies that market the wine. This configuration is giving rise to new ways of investing in wine estates: it will no longer necessarily be a question of total transfer of ownership, but rather of mutually beneficial partnerships between investors and long-established winegrowers.

Three avenues for investment and partnerships between winegrowers and investors

Under the new models for investing in a wine estate, transfers no longer involve a total sale, but rather more flexible and mutually beneficial forms of collaboration between investors and winegrowers.

Several possibilities are available:

Acquisition of land assets by one (or more) investor(s) with continued operation by the historic winegrower, with the investor taking a stake in the operating company’s capital and securing the contractual link between the landowner and the operating company. The investment is secured by the land and property value, which varies little, offers low returns but may have tax advantages
Acquisition of a stake in a wine production and marketing company by an investor whose objective may be to diversify their portfolio without actually becoming a winegrower, while benefiting from their position as a shareholder. The advantage for the winegrower is that it secures the transfer of their business (a real problem for all French ‘farmers’) and allows them to continue to do their job in a secure environment with an outside perspective that can lead to development.
Third option: implementation of a joint strategy and choice of a long-term partnership on both land assets and shares. This solution brings together two worlds that are sometimes far apart: the historic owners, who often have a very long-term vision (several generations), and the new partners, who want to see the fruits of their investments improve the value of the whole or generate more immediate financial and/or tax benefits.

Investor-winemaker partnership: keys to success and management

Among these three avenues for partnerships between wine estates and investors, the geometry is variable since it is determined partly by the individuals who embody these projects, but also by the specific profile of each estate. It also depends on the ability of each party to develop a common or separate future. As agriculture is a long-term endeavour, it is necessary to anticipate possible futures for both parties and to consider them from the outset of the association or partnership through partnership agreements.

The success of such a project lies in setting clearly defined common objectives and ensuring transparent collective management.

Wine Objectives, experts in investment and transfer of wine estates

Wine Objectives understands the challenges facing the wine industry and is well versed in the business rationale of investors. Our team will guide you through the process and help you find the right project.