Ficofi

The house

Philippe Capdouze started Ficofi in 1990 while he was working at Renault. The first Palais des Grands Crus, the tasting that brings estate owners to the members, took place in Paris in 1995, with 10 of them. In 1996 the house set up its buying arm in Bordeaux, at Pessac, to buy at the source, and in 1997 Capdouze left the carmaker to give it all his time. Its names went on file as trademarks in July 1999: Club Entreprise FICOFI, FICOFI Wine Index and FICOFI Wine Exchange, with a motto, “enology in the service of business”.

The club grew with the house. Le Club FICOFI opened in 2005; offices followed in Singapore in 2008, Hong Kong in 2009 and, by 2014, Seoul, and a chapter in the United States in 2016. Its members numbered 170 in 2014, and by 2021 there were 300, in more than 30 countries. The house is now led from Singapore by Ficofi Partners Holding, with Philippe Capdouze, the founder, as chairman. In Hong Kong, since 2013, the house has shared Optim, a company for selective distribution, with the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Petrus.

At a glance

Kind

Négociant

Based in

Paris; buying in Bordeaux since 1996

Founded

1990, by Philippe Capdouze

Owner

Ficofi Partners Holding, of Singapore, since September 2021

Direction

Philippe Capdouze, founder and chairman

Brands

Le Club FICOFI; Le Palais des Grands Crus; Optim

Abroad

Singapore, 2008; Hong Kong, 2009; Seoul, by 2014; United States, 2016

In the record

Optim, with the Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and Petrus, from 2013