by Meredith Galante | Nov 17, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
As millennials increase their buying power and market share of wine sales, brands are adapting to match millennials’ values. Climate change and the environment are among that generation’s most significant concerns.
In fact, 73% of millennials say global warming is “personally important to them,” according to a report from Yale’s Program on Climate Communication.
The wine industry wants to protect the planet, too, and placate its consumers. Brands are responding by creating paper wine bottles, committing to less wine waste, and more. (more…)
by Parker Jones | Nov 10, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
Months after the outset of the pandemic, sales of high-end liquor are still nowhere near their 2019 levels. However, analysts are offering hope that they may be on the road to recovery. Prior to the start of 2020, they had been steadily on the rise for some time. But that all changed when stay-at-home orders decimated the bar and restaurant scene overnight. Now it seems that premium alcohol sales may be set to resume their steady ascent. Let’s explore the factors that caused these shifts, and where they might be headed in the future. (more…)
by Meredith Galante | Nov 3, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
When you walk into a liquor store, you’ll see 30 different types of rosés, all at the same price point. A typical customer will buy one, maybe two different types, and stay loyal to the one they chose first when they make their next purchase.
In the last five years, rosé wine became the summer drink of choice. Sales skyrocketed and showed no sign of slowing down.
“Rosé sales in the past year were up approximately 25 percent. No other beverage category grew nearly as quickly,” Aldo Sohm, wine director at Le Bernardin and Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, told PureWow in 2018.
In 2019, sales of rosé wines grew in the United States to 18.7 million cases, according to Shanken’s Impact Databank. But it seems brands feel customers have had too much rosé. (more…)
by Meredith Galante | Oct 13, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
Each country’s individual handling of the pandemic is affecting how the wine industry is rebounding. But even the countries which have managed to control the COVID-19 outbreak are still suffering from the global economy and tourism industry flailing.
Around the world, wine-producing powerhouses such as New Zealand, Napa Valley, France, and Australia are all having to deal with the challenges the pandemic has imposed upon the wine industry.
Things are so bad some countries are even transforming their wine into hand sanitizer. Let’s take a look how some wine-oriented countries are handling the pandemic: (more…)
by Parker Jones | Oct 6, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
Wildfires have been burning across the west coast of the United States for several weeks now. It seems like every time one blaze is quenched, a new one springs up elsewhere. These fires have tragically destroyed thousands of acres of forests and hundreds of homes, and are only now being successfully contained. Several businesses were severely hurt by the disaster as well, including California’s wine industry. In total, 81% of the wine produced in the United States comes from California, making it the fourth largest wine producer globally.
While the full extent of the damages is unknown, the data clearly indicates that fires like this one are becoming more and more frequent. How will these fires affect the wine industry in 2020 and beyond, and what can be done to help?
(more…)
by Parker Jones | Sep 22, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
As we’ve mentioned in previous blog posts, alcohol delivery services are changing the shape of the liquor industry during the pandemic. Their convenience has led to millions of new customers around the country, which is impressive, considering there are still many states where they aren’t allowed to operate. Most of these services work by partnering with local liquor stores, which show their catalogue of products on the service’s app or web page, so that users can select what they want and purchase it online. Then, drivers hired by the delivery service bring the bottles to the customer and receive a small commission and, hopefully, a tip.
It would seem that this relationship benefits everyone involved: the liquor store, the delivery service, the driver, and the customer. However, some people argue that the relationship actually hurts local liquor stores, who receive significantly less money per sale than they do from in-store purchases. What are the downsides to these partnerships, and how can they be improved? The answer, as you might have guessed, involves data. (more…)
by Meredith Galante | Sep 15, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
You may be surprised to learn that some people walking around with headphones on are not listening to the latest Taylor Swift album, but are instead learning about the latest liquor industry news and gaining a few mixology tips.
One hundred forty-four million Americans listen to podcasts, and there’s no shortage of great drink podcasts that provide mixology tips, industry news, and more.
Businesses spent a total of $497 million on podcast advertising in 2018, according to Small Biz Genius. But with the abundance of podcasts seeking sponsorship, liquor companies can benefit from joining that club to gain customers and increase brand awareness. 54% of podcast consumers say they think about buying products advertised during the podcast, making this a new possible revenue channel for brands. (more…)
by Parker Jones | Sep 10, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
Alcohol delivery apps are perhaps the fastest-growing area of the beverage alcohol industry right now. Even before the pandemic, sales for alcohol delivery services were on the rise. But once the stay-at-home orders were put in place, their numbers went through the roof. Months have passed since then and liquor stores are back open, but the delivery apps are still going strong. Perhaps customers who initially tried out the apps during the early days of the pandemic came to rely on their convenience, or perhaps people recognize that case numbers have not gone down and that non-essential trips out of the house are still a risk. Whatever the reasons, alcohol delivery apps appear to be here to stay.
But there’s one big problem with these services that hasn’t yet been solved: they aren’t available to everyone. Roughly half of the country, by area, is located in a ‘dead zone.’ Delivering within cities is easy enough, since the storage facilities and residences are all fairly close together. But in non-urban areas, having the infrastructure to deliver to every single home just isn’t practical. While the COVID-19 pandemic has been good for business in some ways, it also presents new challenges, especially in delivering to new areas. How long will it take for these services to be available nationwide, and is that goal even realistic? (more…)
by Meredith Galante | Sep 2, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
Customers don’t want to try something new right now. Sales for well-known brands have sky-rocketed, leaving smaller brands, restaurants, and bars behind.
“People are buying more, but cheaper and commercial stuff. They’re not willing to take a risk and try something different right now,” Juan Quintero, a partner in the liquor store Whiskey and Wine in Manhattan, told The New York Times.
The National Restaurant Association’s survey estimates that the restaurant and foodservice industry lost nearly $120 billion in sales during the first three months of the pandemic, according to ABC News. Eateries and bars raked in $38.6 billion in sales in May, on a seasonally-adjusted basis, but that’s down $27 billion from January and February of this year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Now wineries, restaurants, and bars are trying to recover. (more…)
by Parker Jones | Aug 25, 2020 | Wine & Spirits
We already know that Americans are drinking more during quarantine. This is understandable, since it often seems like there’s not much else to be doing while trapped at home. Some have attempted to keep themselves busy by picking up a new hobby instead. Activities like breadmaking are becoming more popular than they have in decades. And now, many have begun combining drinking with hobbies by crafting their own beer, wine, and spirits at home.
Several online retailers are now selling home brewing or infusing kits, which can be used to produce small batches of beer, whiskey, gin, and several other types of spirits. Making liquor at home can be a nice way to avoid unnecessary trips to the liquor store during the pandemic, but more importantly, gives people an entertaining activity that lets them learn more about their favorite spirits. The popularity of these kits has grown during the pandemic, and will likely continue to do so. (more…)
