Find the Right Blend ; SPECIALISMS ++ as Reims Appoints a Champagne Professor, Kathy Harvey Tracks Changes in Specialist MBAs

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The name is so synonymous with relaxation and celebration that it's easy to forget that livelihoods depend on champagne. And like many other businesses, it faces competition from the east.

"I am particularly concerned about China," says Francois Bonvalet, dean of Reims Management School, at the heart of the champagne district. "At the moment, the Chinese have 100,000 hectares of vineyards. Although we have managed to protect the brand name of champagne through international agreements, these don't exist in every jurisdiction.

"In 10-15 years time there is every possibility that China could be producing a perfectly acceptable sparkling wine, labelled …