Alcohol Retailing - Ireland

Published by: Mintel International Group Ltd.

Published: Feb. 1, 2008 - 107 Pages

Table of Contents

Issues in the Market

Key themes in the report

Definition

Abbreviations

Market in Brief

High-value, low-volume sales - are they sustainable?

Responsible drinking

Smoking ban aftermath

Premium alcohol

Alcohol not essential to leisure

Beer goes premium

Wine by the bottle

Vodka a favourite

Drink prices will not kill the pub

Internal Market Environment

Key points

Alcohol consumption continues to decline

Figure 1: Alcohol consumption - all adults, NI and RoI, 2001-07

Consumers drink two to three times a week

Figure 2: Alcohol consumption frequency, anywhere - all adults, NI and RoI, 2001-07

Consumers drinking at home several times per week

Figure 3: Frequency of alcohol consumption at home and elsewhere - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Why the drive for responsible drinking?

Alcohol companies encourage responsibility

Warning labels introduced to help stem binge drinking

The cigarette experience

Middle-aged binge drinkers

Raising tax on alcohol

Figure 4: Breakdown of the cost of a pint of beer, RoI, 2007

Raise drinking age or lower it?

Lowering the drinking age?

24-hour party people

NI weathers the smoking ban

Figure 5: Smoking participation, by gender and age, 1998 and 2002

Figure 6: Agreement with statement ‘Banning smoking in public places is a good idea’ - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Bars still emptying as off-licences fill up

Figure 7: Off-trade and on-trade price changes, RoI, 2005-06

Premium food trends transfer to alcohol

Fair trade and organic alcohol

Figure 8: All-Ireland organic market size, 2004-08

Figure 9: UK retail value sales of organic food, 2002-07

Feeling good about being bad

Alcohol advertising

Advertising to tighten up?

Broader Market Environment

Key points

Credit crunch will see overall spending take a dip

Figure 10: Consumer expenditure, NI and RoI, 2002-07

Figure 11: The economic outlook for RoI and NI, 2006-08

Growing population will secure future market

Foreign nationals to boost demand for imported brands

Older consumers, but with deeper pockets

Figure 12: Average weekly earnings, by age group, NI, 2006

Responsibilities held off for longer

Market Value and Forecast

Key points

Off-trade sales driving all-Ireland volumes

Figure 18: Alcohol sales, by volume, on- and off-trade split, all-Ireland, 2000-13

High-value, low-volume trend visible

Figure 19: Market value and volume, on- and off-trade, all-Ireland, 2000-13

Off-trade triumphs

NI drinkers flock to the supermarkets and off-licences

Figure 20: Index market value, on- and off-trade, NI, 2000-13

Figure 21: Market value and volume, on- and off-trade, NI, 2000-13

RoI on-trade suffers less

Figure 22: Index market value and volume, on-trade, NI and RoI, 2000-07

Figure 23: Market value and volume, on- and off-trade, RoI, 2000-13

Discounts in danger? Not likely

More gloom for beer…

…but real ale is bouncing back

Supermarket own-brand

Segment Performance

Key points

Wine dominates NI off-trade market

Figure 24: Segmentation of volume of sales, on- and off-trade, NI, 2007

NI consumers still go to the bar ‘for a pint’

Figure 25: Segmentation of value and volume of sales, on-trade, NI, 2005 and 2007

NI off-trade performance positive

Figure 26: Segmentation of value and volume of sales, off-trade, NI, 2005 and 2007

Beer dominates RoI

Figure 27: Segmentation of volume of sales, on- and off-trade, RoI, 2007

Things look better for beer in RoI

Figure 28: Segmentation of value and volume of sales, on-trade, RoI, 2005 and 2007

RoI consumers drink less wine but pay more

Figure 29: Segmentation of value and volume of sales, off-trade, RoI, 2005 and 2007

Paying more for less

Companies and Products

Pubs

Figure 30: Number of pubs in NI and RoI, 2000-07*

NI

Figure 31: Pubs owned, by selected pub groups in NI, 2008

Botanic Inns

Beannchor Group

Carmichael Group

RoI

Figure 32: Pubs owned, by selected pub groups in RoI, 2008

Capital Bars

Fitzgerald

Thomas Read Group

Supermarkets

ASDA

Centra

Dunnes Store

Sainsbury’s

Tesco

Superquinn

Off-licences

Cheers

Curley’s

Next Door

Wineflair

Channels to Market

Key points

NI channels widen

Figure 33: Number of on- and off-trade premises with alcohol licences, NI, 2005 and 2007

Ethnic restaurants provide distribution channel for regional beers

Off-trade grows, although future is uncertain

RoI channels become narrow

Figure 34: Number of on- and off-trade premises with alcohol licences, RoI, 2005 and 2007

Off-trade grows, but intense competition lies ahead

Consumer Drink Preferences

Key points

Beer

Regional beer preferences

Figure 35: Beer drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Draught ale, bitter and stout bounce back

Figure 36: Draught ale, bitter and stout drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2001-07

Cider stagnates

Figure 37: Cider drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2005 and 2007

Figure 38: Heavy users of cider, in home - all adults, NI and RoI, 2001-07

NI consumers missing the point of ‘lite’ beer

Figure 39: Low-alcohol beer (bottle and can) drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2002-07

Wine

Figure 40: Wine products bought in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Consumers eating out more leads to increase in demand for wine

Champagne gaining popularity, but set to decline

Young women fancy a glass of rosé while NI men see red

Figure 41: Types of wine drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Light use dominates wine consumption

Figure 42: Frequency of bottled wine drunk in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

RoI consumers willing to splash out more per bottle

Figure 43: Spend per bottle of wine - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Spirits

Figure 44: Spirits bought in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Pre-mix spirits: the FAB fad in decline

Figure 45: Drank pre-mixed spirits and/or alcohol carbonates in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2003-07

Home-brewed whiskey proves popular with RoI men

Figure 46: Drank Scotch whisky and Irish whiskey in the last 12 months - all adults, NI and RoI, 2001-07

Appendix

Figure 55: Average age at marriage - all adults, NI and RoI, 2000-05

Employment statistics

Figure 56: Percentage in employment, by age group, NI and RoI, 2000-05

RoI 1987 Groceries Order

What consumers drink - Demographics

Figure 57: Frequency of alcohol consumption - all adults, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 58: Alcohol consumption in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Drink preferences

Figure 59: Drank cider in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 60: Drank low-alcohol beer and lager (bottle/can) in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 61: Drank canned ale, bitter and stout (excl lager) in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 62: Drank canned lager in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 63: Drank bottled lager in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 64: Drank bottled ale, bitter and stout (excl lager) in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 65: Drank draught lager in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 66: Drank draught ale, bitter and stout (excl lager) in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Wines

Figure 67: Drank sherry/sherry-type wines in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 68: Drank port in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 69: Drank Champagne in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 70: Drank bottled wine in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 71: Bought wine in a box in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 72: Drank vermouth in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Spirits

Figure 73: Drank vodka in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 74: Drank gin in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 75: Drank pre-mixed spirits and alcoholic carbonates in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 76: Drank Scotch whisky in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 77: Drank Irish whiskey in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 78: Drank malt whiskey in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 79: Drank other whiskey and bourbon in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 80: Drank brandy in the last 12 months, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Consumer attitudes towards alcohol - Demographics

Figure 81: Agreement with statement ‘A real man can down several pints of beer at one sitting’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 82: Agreement with statement ‘Most of my drinking is done at home’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 83: Agreement with statement ‘I like to try new drinks’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 84: Agreement with statement ‘I really enjoy a night out at the pub’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 85: Agreement with statement ‘It's worth paying extra for good quality beer’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 86: Agreement with statement ‘I'm prepared to pay more for good quality wine’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Figure 87: Agreement with statement ‘The point of drinking is to get drunk’, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI and RoI, 2007

Cluster demographics

Figure 88: Cluster demographics, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, NI, 2007

Figure 89: Cluster demographics, by gender, age, marital status, working status, socio-economic group and household size, RoI, 2007

Abstract

While the on-trade is losing custom on the back of the introduction of the smoking ban, continued increases in price and its association with violence of Saturday night drinking brawls, the off-trade is continuing to benefit from a consumer migration toward in-home entertainment, the price competition between supermarkets and off-licences and more continental attitudes towards drinking. Consequently market sales in the on-trade have suffered at the hands of a booming performance in the off-trade.

However, with concerns about health and responsible drinking grabbing the headlines on almost a daily basis, both elements of the market are under pressure to move consumers toward a low-volume but high-value market, with premium products driving this change.

• The impact and future repercussions of the alcohol industry adopting responsible drinking policies.
• Rising demand for premium beers and the reasons behind the shift to higher-priced alcohol.
• The increased shift to off-trade channels and the future role of independents in the market.
• The implications of a further decline in the on-trade for the alcohol industry and the initiatives in place to turn it around.
• Alcohol in the context of leisure spending and the competition currently faced by the industry.
• Have NI pubs survived the introduction of the smoking ban?

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