Beverage Dynamics is the largest national business magazine devoted exclusively to the needs of off-premise beverage alcohol retailers, from single liquor stores to big box chains, through coverage of the latest trends in wine, beer and spirits.
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14 Beverage Dynamics • May/June 2015 www.beveragedynamics.com FYI DATA DRIVEN which increased by 1.5%, all those cate- gories also experienced a decline in sales during 2014. "I believe vodka's share of market will continue to erode in the short term, but the category will stabilize over the long term," Rogers says. "There was a 42% de- crease in new vodka products entering the market this year compared to 2013, but there will be brands that continue to achieve success by providing differentia- tion in the consumers' eyes." Thanks to domestic whiskey sales, the total whiskey category was up 1.9% in 2014, ahead of the 1.5% increase in all non-whiskey sales. Categories with notable growth include Tequila (up 5.2%), Cordials/Liqueurs (up 6.2%) and Brandy/Cognac (up 3.3%). The larg- est decline during 2014 was in Prepared Cocktails, which decreased by 7.9% to less than 5 million cases sold. What's in store for 2015? "I expect to see more small-batch and barrel-aged products across all categories, from suppliers large and small," Rogers says. "Today's consumer wants to feel special, and purchasing a product that they feel is 'crafted' for them achieves that. On the retail side, on-demand home delivery services will continue to make inroads as convenience speaks volumes (pun intended)." BD THE DISTILLED SPIRITS INDUSTRY is still struggling to build momentum as it comes out of the recession, growing 1.6% in 2014, according to preliminary data from the Beverage Information & Insights Group (BIIG). The research group's recently released Handbook Advance shows that more than 213.4 million cases of distilled spirits were sold during calendar year 2014, compared to 210.1 million in 2013. "The industry shouldn't be excited about a 1.6 percent growth rate," says Adam Rogers, BIIG's Manager of Information Services. "But what's important to remember is that today's consumers are drinking less, but they're also drinking better, which bodes well from a revenue perspective." Looking at what's driving spirits sales growth, the biggest winner in 2014 was Amer- ican Whiskey, which increased 4.9 percent over 2013 with more than 23.6 million cases sold (compared to 22.5 million a year earlier). American Whiskey also increased its share of the overall spirits category, from 10.7% in 2013 to 11.1% in 2014. "Straight whiskey's growth of 6.5 percent last year puts it only a year or two away from reaching its apex of 20 million cases, which it last posted two decades ago," Rogers says. "But what's really impressive are the current offerings from suppliers, which are high quality and experimental. They're truly works of art." American Whiskey's increase came at the expense of Canadian Whisky, Scotch, Gin, Vodka and rum, which all saw their share of the industry decline. Except for vodka, AMERICAN WHISKEY FUELING SPIRITS INDUSTRY GROWTH BY JEREMY NEDELKA (Thousands of 9-liter cases) Category 2013 2014p Cases Share Cases Share %Change Straights 17,630 8.4% 18,770 8.8% 6.5% Blends 4,890 2.3% 4,850 2.3% -0.8% Total American Whiskey 22,520 10.7% 23,620 11.1% 4.9% Canadian 15,675 7.5% 15,450 7.2% -1.4% Scotch 8,835 4.2% 8,700 4.1% -1.5% Irish & Other 2,450 1.2% 2,635 1.2% 7.6% Total Imported Whiskey 26,960 12.8% 26,785 12.6% -0.6% Total Whiskey 49,480 23.6% 50,405 23.6% 1.9% Gin 10,635 5.1% 10,415 4.9% -2.1% Vodka 71,335 34.0% 72,390 33.9% 1.5% Rum 26,830 12.8% 26,430 12.4% -1.5% Tequila 13,620 6.5% 14,325 6.7% 5.2% Brandy & Cognac 10,695 5.1% 11,050 5.2% 3.3% Cordials & Liqueurs 22,180 10.6% 23,545 11.0% 6.2% Prepared Cocktails 5,275 2.5% 4,860 2.3% -7.9% Total Non-Whiskey 160,570 76.4% 163,015 76.4% 1.5% Total Distilled Spirits 210,050 100.0% 213,420 100.0% 1.6% (p) Preliminary Source: Handbook Advance 2015 DISTILLED SPIRITS CONSUMPTION BY CATEGORY, 2013-2014P For more information about the Handbook Advance and additional beverage al- cohol industry data from the Beverage Information & Insights Group, visit www.albevresearch.com and www.bevinfostore.com.