The world’s best-selling gin brands
As the world’s most dynamic spirits category continues to evolve with a new gin launching almost weekly, SB takes a look at how the big players are performing.
The gin boom continues, but how did the big players fare? Check out the world’s best-selling gin brands by volume salesIt’s been a phenomenal year for gin, with – for the most part – rocketing year-on-year volumes, double-digit growth, and a stable leader board in terms of volume development.
The US and EU gin markets continue to mature at a rate unseen by any other category, so many brands are increasingly looking to emerging markets, inspiring a new wave of growth in the segment.
While the biggest five players here have seen growth almost across the board, it’s the smaller ‘craft’ players that are mixing up the segment – should the category be worried? As long as the top players maintain their growth, we reckon there’s room for all.
Following our recently published Brand Champions 2016 – our analysis of those brands selling more than one million cases annually that are performing exceptionally within their category – we run through the world’s best-selling gin brands on the market today.
Click through the following pages to discover the top 5 best-selling gin brands, listed in order of their disclosed nine-litre case sales.
5. Seagram’s
2015: 2.50m
2014: 2.68m
% change: -6.72%
Place last year: 3
Last year the Pernod Ricard-owned brand was in competition with sister brand Beefeater, but its poor performance in 2015 dropped Seagram’s two places on the leader board. Considering that in 2015, total gin volume sales in Seagram’s key market – the US – fell 1.7%, it’s understandable that the brand too lost volume – the only million case-selling gin to do so. With little on the horizon in the way of advertising campaigns and marketing boosts, we predict declines might well continue into next year.
4. Tanqueray
2015: 2.60m
2014: 2.40m
% change: 8.33%
Place last year: 5
Diageo’s Tanqueray continued its upward sales trajectory, again adding a respectable 200,000 cases to its global sales for the second year running. Already a firm bartender favourite; in 2015 the brand launched “juniper-forward” Tanqueray Bloomsbury gin inspired by a recipe from the 1880s, piquing interest and no doubt further solidifying this highly sought-after status.
3. Beefeater
2015: 2.70m
2014: 2.58m
% change: 4.65%
Place last year: 4
Stepping up one place from last year, Pernod Ricard’s Beefeater gin witnessed a bounce back in sales that catapulted its volumes to its highest recorded level. The brand has taken steps to boost volume; re-releasing a limited edition run of Beefeater Crown Jewel, rolling out a new London-inspired bottle design for its Beefeater London Dry Gin, and rolling out its second cask-rested gin expression, Beefeater Burrough’s Reserve Edition 2.
2. Bombay Sapphire
2015: 3.33m
2014: 3.00m
% change: 11.00%
Place last year: 2
Bacardi’s Bombay Sapphire was the second fastest-growing gin of 2015, reporting impressive double-digit growth. Since 2011, the brand has managed to boost its sales by more than one million cases, increasing distance from its closest competitor, Beefeater. Its volumes were likely bolstered in 2015 with the launch of a “milestone” provenance-focused campaign and Star of Bombay expression.
1. Gordon’s
2015: 4.40m
2014: 3.60m
% change: 22.22%
Place last year: 1
An incredible rebound has earned Gordon’s the well-deserved title of both top international gin brand and Gin Brand Champion 2016. Not only has Diageo’s flagship gin brand finally returned to growth in the wake of hefty declines post-2011, it added almost a quarter to its global volume sales – no mean feat.
