Waitrose supermarket reports surge in gin sales
A growing interest in new styles has spurred a 7% gin sales boost for Waitrose, which has almost doubled the size of its range in the last year to meet demand.
UK supermarket Waitrose has seen its gin sales grow 7% year-on-yearThe supermarket chain now offers 52 different varieties of the spirit, 27 of which were added in the last 12 months, making gin its biggest-selling white spirit.
This includes Waitrose’s own collaboration with Michelin-starred chef Heston Blumenthal to create Heston from Waitrose Earl Grey Gin.
Waitrose spirits buyer John Vine said: “Our customers know their gin and at Waitrose we have a style for everyone.”
Vine commented on the increase in artisan-style gin: “Shoppers continue to enjoy traditional London dry styles with the juniper hit but we have also seen a rise in popularity of Gin Mare, which boasts more rosemary and the flavours of a summer evening.
“We’ve even recently started listing a Pink Pepper gin exclusively on waitrosecellar.com which we’re tipping to be the trend-setting gin for this summer.”
A recent report by the WSTA showed that sales of British-made gin alone have grown by 18% in the last two years, with “premium” expressions seeing a rise of almost 50%.
Outside of the UK, last year Dutch spirits group Wenneker developed a new Elderflower Gin to appeal to growing consumer interest for both gin and elderflowers, while Madrid’s Santamania released an aged version of its inaugural London dry gin.
