The world’s 10 most popular vodka brands
Vodka is one of the most highly competitive categories in the spirits industry, but which are the world’s most popular brands?
Click through the following pages to see the world’s 10 most popular vodka brandsIn the category there are more brands selling over one million cases than any other, however, a select few have dominated the global vodka market in the past year.
Overall, the sector has seen a significant amount of declines and stagnant sales, but this list is still full of brands selling huge volumes, with the number one spot ranked as the brand selling the most volumes across the entire spirits category.
As both Grey Goose and Skyy international brands have slip off this list, they are replaced by a handful of domestic vodka brands which are continuing to report huge volumes despite widespread tax hikes and anti-alcohol initiatives taking place across the Eastern European vodka heartland.
Following our recently published Brand Champions 2014 – our pick of those brands selling over one million cases annually that are performing exceptionally within their category – we run through which are the world’s most popular vodka brands on the market today.
Click through the following pages to discover which are the world’s 10 most popular vodka brands.
10. Svedka
2013 case sales: 3.9m
2012 case sales: 3.9m
Growth in 2013: 1%
Constellation Brands-owned Swedish vodka brand Svedka may have seen very marginal growth in 2013, but set this against multiple declines among the world’s 10 most popular vodka brand and this is no mean feat. The brand’s sales were also supported by its launch in South Korea, where it claimed the brand was “rapidly growing”.
9. Żubrówka
2013 case sales: 4.4m
2012 case sales: 3.9m
Growth in 2013: 13%
Polish vodka Żubrówka, our new Vodka Brand Champion, saw its sales surge 13% to 4.4m cases in 2013. This success was despite the fact that its parent company Central European Distribution Corporation (CEDC) was acquired by Russian Standard in the middle of the year, somewhat of a surprise giving that the acquisitions can often temporarily interrupt growth and stagnate sales. The bison grass vodka also extended its global presence last year, rolling out in Australia and global travel retail.
8. Zoladkowa Gorzka Czysta De Luxe
2013 case sales: 4.6m
2012 case sales: 4.3m
Growth in 2013: 8%
In 2013, Zoladkowa Gorzka Czysta De Luxe, owned by Eastern European spirits producer Stock Spirits Group, saw a steady increase in sales. The brand shot to prominence in 2009 as the fastest-growing vodka brand globally after a record breaking year which saw the Polish vodka record 188% growth as 5.39 million nine-litre cases were sold. Volumes plummeted from 6.4m cases in 2010 to 4.4m cases in 2011, but the brand has seen steady growth since then. It’s current trajectory could, however, be threatened by the financial uncertainty of Stock Spirits, which saw a profit decline of 16.4%, while the group’s majority shareholder Oaktree Management Capital, sold its entire 36.8% stake in the company earlier this year.
7. Krupnik
2013 case sales: 5.0m
2012 case sales: 5.1m
Growth in 2013: -2%
The small decline in sales of Belvedere-owned Krupnik vodka has caused it to drop from the world’s fifth best-selling vodka brand, to seventh. This is in stark comparison to the brand’s rapid growth between 2010 and 2012 when sales jumped from 1.9m to 5.1m cases. The honey vodka is hugely popular in Poland and Lithuania and is created using a recipe which dates back to the 18th Century.
6. Minsk Kristall
2013 case sales: 5.5m
2012 case sales: 5.5m
Growth in 2013: 0%
Minsk Kristall, the flagship vodka of one of the largest and oldest distilleries in Belarus, failed to grow its volume sales in 2013 after experiencing steady sales increases from 2009-2012. However, the brand is now extending its global reach by launching in the US. According to the distillery, it vodka was “developed especially for the American palette using a five time distillation process for superior smoothness”.
5. Belenkaya
2013 case sales: 5.6m
2012 case sales: 7.3m
Growth in 2013: -23%
Russian vodka brand Belenkaya saw the biggest sales decline out of the entire million case selling vodka group in 2013, dropping to 5.6m cases, down a huge 23% from 7.3m cases sold in the previous year. This decline has caused it to be pushed out of the top three best-selling vodka brands list. Filtered through 13 metres of coal and put through a nine step purification system, Belenkaya is available in four varieties – Belenkaya, Belenkaya Lux, Belenkaya Gold and Belenkaya Cedar.
4. Zelyenay Marka
2013 case sales: 6m
2012 case sales: 6.9m
Growth in 2013: -13%
Russian Standard’s largest vodka brand Zelyenay Marka, or Green Mark, also saw a significant decline of 13% in 2013, but that didn’t stop the popular regional brand from keeping its position as one of the top-seling vodkas in the world. However, the brand has suffered massive declines continually since 2009, when it sold 11.2m cases.
3. Pyat Ozer
2013 case sales: 6.4m
2012 case sales: 7.0m
Growth in 2013: -9%
Pyat Ozer has overtaken Belenkaya as the world’s most popular domestic vodka brand, despite suffering a 9% decline itself. This dip follows four years of steady growth for the Omkvinprom-owned brand, which is produced in Siberia. Along with the Russian government’s tax hikes, the dip could be attributed to a growing penchant for international dark spirits in the traditional vodka belt.
2. Absolut
2013 case sales: 11.4m
2012 case sales: 11.4m
Growth in 2013: -0.3%
Swedish vodka giant Absolut has maintained its position as the world’s second most popular vodka brand despite experiencing minor declines in 2013. With a focus on flavour innovation and creative marketing strategies, the Pernod Ricard-owned brand continues to engage consumers across the globe. It even claimed to be “so iconic” that it dropped words “Country of Sweden” and “Vodka” from its logo. The brand focussed on particular markets last year with the launch of a range of city-inspired bottles.
1. Smirnoff
2013 case sales: 26.1m
2012 case sales: 26.3m
Growth in 2013: -0.7%
While Diageo’s giant vodka brand Smirnoff saw a marginal decline last year, it still sells more than its three nearest best-selling rivals put together, and has kept its position as the world’s best-selling spirits brand. Smirnoff continued leading the way with flavour innovation last year with the launch of a cinnamon-flavoured gold leaf bottling, Wild Honey and Cinna-Sugar flavours, as well as an array of low-calorie “skinny spirits”. The brand also launched a new variant – Smirnoff White – which it claims is a “true revolution” in its distillation process”, offering the possibility that sales could be pushed even further in the super-premium segment in the year to come.
