Treasury’s Mike Clarke stockpiles top-end wines, but retailers seek more profit

Mike Clarke is holding back luxury wines to smooth out profits, while retailers eye more of the pie too. But is this the one that got away from private equity bidders? It’s the corporate equivalent of having the best-stocked cellar in the street, where invitations to dinner are sought after by those in the neighbourhood. Treasury Wine Estates chief executive Mike Clarke has been sitting on $400 million worth of high-end luxury wines that he’s been squirrelling away to ensure he’s better able to deliver more consistent profits year after year, in a company with a history of extreme fluctuations.