Summertime events boosted up sales despite a change in drinking attitude with consumers
ALCOHOL is the biggest sector within food and drink and, as such, has increased importance in terms of driving revenue for retailers. In Scotland, the off-trade is worth £1.65billion per year.
In this year’s list, Tennent’s remains Scotland’s No.1 alcohol brand. Whyte and Mackay overtakes The Famous Grouse for the No.2 slot and we also have two new brands on our list this year, with The Glenlivet at eight and Johnnie Walker at 10.
And in 2024, all beer brands, including Tennent’s, will have seen a boost to sales from sporting events such as the Euros and the Olympics.
At Kantar, we know that these events are important and beer sales increased by 14% during the group stages of the Euros when Scotland was playing.
The convenience sector performed particularly well during this period, with plenty of retailers remaining on top of the “summer of sport” through in-store theatre and ongoing promotions across the off-trade.
Despite this, the brands on this list will have faced some challenges in a year in which the category has struggled to increase in volume as it has done in previous years and growth has remained lower than last year for beer, lager, and spirits.
At Kantar, we are seeing some interesting shifts in how we drink and socialise with alcohol.
To maximise sales, manufacturers and retailers will need to be aware of and cater for these changes.
There is a trend towards moderation and abstinence and a subtle change in how consumers are drinking alcohol at home.
Some 44% of us are now moderating our alcohol consumption and this has increased since 2018. We are drinking on fewer occasions and are also having fewer drinks when we do so.
This provides opportunities for the soft drinks category and the low and no-alcohol sector in particular, although there are no low alcohol brands appearing on our top 10 list just yet.
The volume of low and no-alcohol has increased by 9% compared to last year.
When we drink alcohol at home, we are moving away from the regular, everyday drink and moving towards more planned, sociable occasions.
A quiet night in remains important, but these occasions have declined in the last five years, while enjoying time with friends and those special celebrations have all increased.
Catering for these will ensure that the return on the fixture will be maximised and help to support overall alcohol sales as we head into the new year.
Whatever your drink of choice may be, let’s raise a glass to the success of the brands that feature on our list for 2024.
