La Cave des Oblats

What La Cave des Oblats does

La Cave des Oblats is a single-location specialty wine merchant (caviste) based in Liège, Belgium, operating under the legal entity Cave des Oblats SRL. Founded in 1988 by Roger Michel along with Francis Begon and David Michel, the business curates and retails a portfolio of more than 800 French wine references spanning Champagne, Alsace, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Loire, Rhône Valley, Languedoc-Roussillon, Provence, Corsica, Jura, Savoie, Beaujolais, and Sud-Ouest. Distribution is concentrated in the Wallonia region, with sales executed through a physical retail shop at Rue de Mons 73, a downloadable PDF catalogue, and a dedicated in-house delivery service. The company's core technology is wine curation and retail merchandising rather than any digital or software platform.

The business serves two customer segments: individual wine enthusiasts (the primary segment) and professional hospitality clients such as restaurants and hotels. Revenue is generated predominantly through one-time retail wine sales supplemented by experiential service revenue from weekly Saturday public tastings (free entry, intended to drive retail conversion) and bespoke private tasting events. Product extensions include the O'Box line of curated regional gift boxes priced between €75 and €250 and annual gift cards. The current operating team comprises approximately six people, including a WSET Level 3-certified sales manager (Alexandre), two consultants with 35 years of tenure (Roger and Francis), and a dedicated delivery driver; a new management team assumed control in 2020 alongside a relocation to the current Burenville-area premises. Marketing is conducted through the company's website, blog content on wine pairings and regions, a newsletter, and Facebook and Instagram accounts.

Name

La Cave des Oblats

Legal name

Cave des Oblats SRL

Website

https://oblats.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

La Cave des Oblats is a single-location specialty French wine merchant in Liège, Belgium, curating 800+ references for individual enthusiasts and hospitality professionals through a retail shop, catalogue sales, tastings, and gift boxes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Wine Retail

NAICS

Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (4453), Wine and Distilled Alcoholic Beverage Merchant Wholesalers (42482)

SIC

Wholesale-Beer, Wine & Distilled Alcoholic Beverages (5180)

akta.pro primary industry

Wine Retail (Bottle Shops & Wine Merchants) (CRANABAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Wine Tastings & Vineyard/Winery Tours (THAJAGAD)

Keywords

• Wine retail
• French wine import
• Wine tasting events
• Wine gift boxes
• Specialty wine shop

Headquarters

HQ city

Liège

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Wine Retail Sales: Retail sale of French wines through physical shop. Customers purchase individual bottles or gift boxes (O'Box) at the cave or through catalogue.
2. Wine Tasting Events: Weekly Saturday tastings open to the public (free entry) and custom private tasting events organized on request for private occasions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

La Cave des Oblats is a specialty wine merchant (caviste) based in Liège, Belgium, curating and selling more than 800 references of French wines sourced from independent winemakers and wine houses. The shop provides in-store retail, weekly Saturday wine tastings, private tastings for groups, customized O'Box gift boxes, gift cards, and delivery service across the Liège region.

Product overview

La Cave des Oblats is a traditional wine merchant in Liège, Belgium, operating as a single-location retail store rather than a technology platform. The business offers a curated portfolio of over 800 French wine references through direct in-store sales, complemented by experiential services including weekly Saturday tastings and custom private tasting events. Product offerings include pre-packaged O'Box gift sets and gift cards, with wines sourced from partner domaines organized by French wine-producing regions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• O'Box: Gift boxes and custom wine selections offered during holiday seasons

Products and services

• In-store French wine retail

Quantifiable outcome

• Weekly Saturday tastings open to public with free entry
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Brabant Wine TrophyminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLa Cave des Oblats supports the Brabant Wine Trophy, a wine competition event in the Brabant region of Belgium.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Wine & More: Belgian specialist wine retailer operated within the Colruyt group, focused on curated wines across Belgian locations — directly comparable category and geography.

Broad incumbents

• Nicolas: France's largest specialist wine retail chain, owned by Castel, with broad French wine coverage across hundreds of stores — comparable category (French wine retail) at vastly greater scale.
• Ventealapropriete.com: Large French online wine retailer selling curated French ranges direct to consumers — comparable category but a different, digital-first operating model that competes for the same Belgian consumer wallet.

Direct peers

• Majestic Wine: UK multi-channel wine retailer combining physical shops, tasting events and e-commerce with curated French ranges — comparable in blending retail, advisory and event-driven GTM.
• La Cave Augé: Historic Paris caviste founded in 1850, focused on curated fine French wines with deep producer relationships, in-store tastings and a strong sommelier-advisory culture — directly comparable model to La Cave des Oblats.
• Berry Bros. & Rudd: UK specialty wine merchant with curated French portfolio, expert advisory staff and long-tenured buyer relationships with estates — comparable as a heritage-led, curation-driven fine wine merchant.
• Honest Grapes: UK independent specialist wine merchant focused on premium French wines via curated e-commerce and events — comparable positioning in specialty French wine retail with a digital layer.
• Yapp Brothers: Independent UK wine merchant specialising in small, artisanal French estates with strong producer relationships — directly comparable model of deep, expert-led French wine curation.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Cavedesoblats
• Instagraminstagram.com/cave_des_oblats
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/la-cave-des-oblats

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about La Cave des Oblats