Dugas: Arnaud Jobard presents his strategy in France

A spirits distributor in France, Dugas has been part of Stock Spirits Group since September 2023. Arnaud Jobard took over as CEO in June 2026, following a career in the beverage industry with companies such as Coca-Cola, Danone, and Suntory. His responsibilities now extend to the United Kingdom, where he has become General Manager for Western Europe.

In this interview, he describes the new organization of the company, the role of wine merchants, the HORECA sector (cafes, hotels, restaurants) and large retailers, as well as his reading of a market marked by rising costs and new consumer expectations.

Adrien Bonetto: Can you tell us about your career path before Dugas?

Arnaud Jobard: I have been working in the beverage industry for over 30 years, with a career primarily focused on business development, marketing and team management.

I began my career at Coca-Cola, where I held various sales positions in France and Europe, before joining Danone Waters in 2017 as Vice President of Sales. In 2021, I joined Suntory Beverage & Food France as Sales Director, and then served as interim Managing Director of Suntory Global Spirits France from October 2025.

Throughout my career, I have had the opportunity to develop and transform organizations, with a strong conviction: performance depends first and foremost on teams, their commitment and their ability to focus on the right priorities to meet the expectations of customers and consumers.

Joining Dugas last June was a great opportunity to put this experience to use for a company recognized for its expertise in spirits, the richness of its portfolio and its knowledge of distribution channels.
I am also Vice-President of the think tank Entreprises et Progrès, which works to reconcile economic and social performance by placing people at the heart of the company. It is a vision to which I am particularly committed.

AB: You have been the CEO of Dugas since June 2026. What diagnosis did you make upon your arrival?

AJ: Upon my arrival, I discovered a company with real strengths: a rich and diverse portfolio of brands, expert teams and strong relationships of trust with our partners.

What makes Dugas strong is its ability to unearth hidden gems, support them and develop brands across our three channels: wine merchants, the hospitality industry and mass retail.

We are also fortunate to be able to rely on the complementarity between Stock Spirits Group's own brands and our partner brands, which allows us to meet very different needs and expectations.
My conclusion was therefore quite clear: we have solid fundamentals, but we can go further by getting our teams and expertise to work together better.

This is the whole point of the new organization: to bring marketing and sales closer together, simplify our operations, and better adapt our strategies to each channel. The goal is to increase efficiency in the field, serving our brands, our customers, and our partners.

AB: Your scope is expanding to the United Kingdom and you are becoming General Manager Western Europe. What is the rationale behind this reorganization within Stock Spirits Group?

AJ: With this Western Europe scope, we aim to bring the French and British teams closer together and better share their expertise. Our two markets have their own specific characteristics, which must be respected, but they face common challenges: how to develop brands, adapt distribution strategies, and respond to evolving consumer needs. The goal is not to apply the same model everywhere, but to leverage our respective experiences.

AB: What can the French and British teams bring to each other?

AJ: The French and British teams have complementary expertise, particularly in brand development, knowledge of distribution channels and commercial activations.

What interests me is fostering concrete exchanges, sharing best practices, and seeing how we can mutually draw inspiration from what works in each market.

Let's take the example of Ready-to-Drink, a category in which the British market is more advanced than the French market and where we certainly have a lot to learn from our neighbors.

For me, the value of this organization will be measured above all by what it will allow us to concretely improve on the ground.

AB: What does this organization change for the brands, customers and teams of Dugas in France?

AJ: I did indeed want to bring together under one management the Partner Brands and the Wine Merchant and Hospitality networks, under the responsibility of Clément de Palma.

The objective is simple: to strengthen the alignment between our brands' strategy and their commercial deployment. By bringing these teams together, we facilitate the coordination of actions, while offering our clients support better tailored to the specific needs of each distribution channel.

For our teams, this also clarifies responsibilities and streamlines communication. Above all, this new organization should allow us to better execute our strategies in the field, right down to the point of sale.

AB: Dugas presents itself as an omnichannel player. What does this mean in concrete terms, and where do you see the strongest growth potential?

AJ: For me, being omnichannel isn't about offering the same thing everywhere. It's primarily about knowing where and how to develop each brand. You don't work the same way in supermarkets, at a wine shop, or in a cocktail bar, and each channel has its own specific characteristics.

That is precisely Dugas' strength: we have a rich and complementary portfolio, between our own brands and partner brands, which allows us to adapt our offer, our prices and our activations to each network.

I see real growth potential across our three circuits. My priority is to ensure we have the right strategies for each of them, because I am convinced that this differentiated approach will make the difference.

AB: What place does mass retail occupy in relation to the hotel, restaurant, and catering (HORECA) sector and wine merchants?

AJ: I don't see them as opposing forces: these channels have complementary functions. Large retailers provide distribution and visibility, the hospitality sector contributes to product discovery and recommendations, particularly for cocktails, and wine merchants play a central role in advising and building brands. Our responsibility is to offer each channel a relevant selection without diluting brand identity or our expertise as a specialist distributor.

AB: How do you support wine merchants in the face of competition from e-commerce?

AJ: E-commerce has changed shopping habits, but it will never replace the advice, discovery and relationship of trust that a wine merchant can offer his customers.

Our role is precisely to help them leverage this difference while making their daily lives easier. Our B2B platform, the support of our sales teams, training programs, and events like the Salon Dugas are all ways we support their growth.

My ambition is clear: to make Dugas THE preferred distributor for wine merchants. It's a distribution channel to which we are deeply committed, and I want to dedicate all our energy to it, combining the power of digital technology with the human touch that sets us apart.

AB: How do you envision the development of the portfolio: brand acquisitions, new partnerships?

AJ: Our priority is first and foremost to sustainably develop the brands we represent. We also remain attentive to opportunities for new partnerships, provided they make sense for our portfolio and our clients. Recent partnerships around Crossfire Hurricane and BuzzBallz illustrate this diversity of positions.

With Stock Spirits Group's own brands, we also have a significant foundation. The goal is not to accumulate products, but to build a coherent and complementary offering.

AB: What criteria guide your choices of a brand to distribute?

AJ: We first consider the quality of the product, the uniqueness of the brand, and its potential in the French market. But a strong brand isn't enough: its pricing must be relevant, its place in our portfolio clear, and its development credible within the distribution channels we target. The relationship with the partner is equally important. Distributing a brand means building a long-term project together.

AB: Which categories of spirits are increasing or decreasing in your portfolio?

AJ: Consumers are more selective, and consumption occasions are diversifying. Whisky and rum remain popular, while mixology and ready-to-drink formats are opening up new possibilities. However, it's important to distinguish between general market trends and the performance of our own portfolio.

AB: Costs, excise duties, customs duties, declining consumption… How is the current context impacting your business? 

AJ: The market is more demanding: consumers are more selective in their purchases, while businesses must contend with multiple pressures on costs and prices. Our response is to remain highly attentive to the relevance of our offering and its commercial execution. The diversity of our portfolio allows us to address various price points and consumption occasions, provided we adapt our strategy to each channel.

AB: What is your view on the growth of non-alcoholic drinks?

AJ: Alcohol-free products meet a demand for choice: consumers want to be able to vary their consumption occasions, with or without alcohol. We are following this trend and are already present in this segment with Feragaia. I see it as a complementary offering, which can also foster creativity around mixology, rather than as an opposition to traditional spirits.

AB: What are your priorities for the coming months?

AJ: I see three priorities for the coming months. First, to make our new organization a true driver of efficiency and collaboration between teams. Second, to continue developing our portfolio, with a selective approach tailored to each circuit.

Finally, we aim to give concrete expression to our Western Europe scope by fostering the sharing of expertise between France and the United Kingdom. Our ambition remains to strengthen Dugas' position as THE leading partner for spirits brands and professionals in France.