Ferrer Noguer will 30 million to expand Ferrer Wines

Pedro Ferrer Noguer, the former owner of Freixenet, will devote part of the money obtained from the sale of his stake in the historic cava producer to boosting Ferrer Wines, the group of still and sparkling wines he created with his family and which he now wants to take into markets such as the United States, Mexico, Brazil and India.

Ferrer Noguer explained in an interview with this newspaper at the family farmhouse La Freixeneda, in Sant Joan de Mediona, Barcelona, that he plans to invest around 30 million euros in the company’s expansion, although he has not yet finalized the exact allocation of those funds. The priority, he said, is to strengthen the international presence of a company that today sells between 80% and 85% of its production in Spain and aims to raise exports from the current 10% to 30% this year.

The move comes after the Ferrer family fully exited Freixenet’s capital, which ended up in the hands of the German group Henkell. Ferrer Noguer recalled that back in the 1990s and early 2000s the company had already separated its still wines into a distinct division and that branch was left out of the first sale. In 2019, together with his sisters Mercè and Dolors and his cousin José Luis Bonet Ferrer, current president of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, he launched Ferrer Wines to continue that business.

“It was something I was very excited about,” Ferrer Noguer said of the project, which he became personally involved in while remaining linked to Freixenet in recent years. His goal now is to consolidate a company that will not compete in size with the former family house, but will do so in terms of reach and profitability. “It won’t be as big as Freixenet, but we want it to be a successful group,” he said.

The international plan is already under way. Ferran Ribalta, managing director of Ferrer Wines, said the company is working with distributors to gain a stronger foothold in the United States and explore opportunities in Mexico and Brazil, with a longer-term eye on Asia, especially India. The strategy reflects a shared conviction within management: the Spanish market remains important, but real growth lies abroad. “Spain is 1% of the global market,” Ferrer Noguer said.

Ferrer Wines brings together brands and wineries with very different origins. These include Can Sala, Hill, Vionta, Valdubón, Orube, Etcétera, Finca Ferrer and Conde de Caralt. The group includes Albariños from the Rías Baixas appellation, wines from Ribera del Duero and Rueda, a winery in La Rioja and a small cava production at Can Sala and Cavas Hill. It also has an estate in Priorat and another in Argentina.

As for sparkling wines, Ferrer said the intention is to remain within the Cava appellation and not join Corpinnat, as other producers have done in recent years. The company also remains committed to growing without major acquisitions for now. It does plan an initial investment of 700,000 euros for new machinery at Cavas Hill.

Ribalta said the strategic plan aims to “grow better” in brands, margin and profitability. Last year Ferrer Wines posted revenue of around 30 million euros. Meanwhile, Ferrer Noguer keeps an office at Freixenet and remains in contact with Henkell’s executives. “They are good professionals,” he said of those who now control the company founded by his grandfather Pedro Ferrer Bosch and later developed by his father Josep Ferrer Sala.