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The top 10 best-selling vodka brands
By Owen BellwoodDespite steady declines in vodka sales in recent years, a number of brands have found success in this competitive category. Here, we present the world’s best-selling vodkas.
SB ranks the best-selling vodka brands of 2018
Global volumes have been in steady decline in recent years, with sales down from 323.75m nine-litre cases in 2017 to 322.15m last year. In spite of this, a number of the world’s top-selling brands saw their sales rise in 2018.
With new entries in this year’s top 10 from Roust-owned Soplica and Ukrainian brand Nemiroff, as well as sales boosts for seven of the 10 brands featured, this year’s Brand Champions report suggests there is still health in the category.
Following our recently published Brand Champions 2019 – our pick 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 vodka brands on the market today.
Click through the following pages to discover the top 10 best-selling vodka brands, listed in order of their nine-litre case sales.
Data is listed to one decimal place for ease of reading, but the percentage changes are based on the full data supplied to The Brand Champions 2019.
10. Soplica
2018: 3.9m
2017: 3.5m
% change: +11.4
Place last year: –
A new entry in this year’s list is Roust-owned Soplica. The Polish vodka brand saw its sales rise by 11.4% in 2018 to reach 3.9m nine-litre cases.
Having almost doubled its sales since 2014, Soplica has overtaken big name brands including Stolichnaya, Skyy and Grey Goose to earn its position as one of the world’s best-selling brands.
9. Magic Moments
2018: 4.0m
2017: 3.7m
% change: +7.6
Place last year: 10
After entering the top 10 in 2018, Magic Moments received a 7.6% sales increase last year and moved up to ninth place in our countdown of the best-selling vodkas.
Launched in 2006, the Magic Moments range consists of six variants: classic, green apple, orange, strawberry, lemon, ginger and lemongrass, and chocolate.
8. Pyat Ozer (Five Lakes)
2018: 4.3m
2017: 4.3m
% change: +0.2
Place last year: 7
Dropping down to eighth place despite a slight sales boost is Alcohol Siberia Group’s Pyat Ozer brand, which sold 4.3m nine-litre-cases in 2018.
Available in 55 markets worldwide, Pyat Ozer is made from water from the Taiga lakes and consists of three expressions: Classic, Special and Premium.
7. Svedka
2018: 4.4m
2017: 4.5m
% change: -1.1
Place last year: 6
Also dropping one position in this year’s list is Constellation Brands-owned Svedka, which posted sales of 4.4m cases in 2018.
However, the brand’s recently launched Bring Your Own Spirit campaign looks set to turn around its fortunes, with Constellation reporting “strong sales growth” for Svedka in the fourth quarter of its latest fiscal year.
The Swedish vodka is also hoping to increase its sales in the coming years with the launch of a new pink variant made with 5% rosé wine.
6. Nemiroff
2018: 4.7m
2017: 4.4m
% change: +5.4
Place last year: –
Ukrainian vodka brand Nemiroff saw volume sales grow 5.5% in 2018 to reach 4.7m nine-litre-cases, securing the sixth place in our list of the top-selling brands.
Created in Nemyriv, Ukraine, Nemiroff is now available in more than 80 countries. The brand, which is the official sponsor of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, also attributed its success last year to its global expansion, which included launching in Spain, New Zealand and Africa.
5. Hlibny Dar
2018: 7.5m
2017: 7.1m
% change: +4.9
Place last year: 5
Holding firm in fifth place is Bayadera Group’s Hlibny vodka, which posted gains of 4.9% to 7.5m in 2018.
As well as launching a new marketing push to increase the profile of the brand, Hlibny also gained listings in Canada for the first time in 2018 – with its spirits available through the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.
4. Żubrówka
2018: 8.6m
2017: 7.9m
% change: +8.9
Place last year: 4
After posting four years of back-to-back growth, Roust-owned Żubrówka sold 8.6m nine-litre-cases in 2018 to retain its position as the fourth best-selling vodka.
The last year saw the brand host a number of “immersive” activations at festivals in the UK, while the brand also continued to rollout its Biała expression into further markets.
3. Khortytsa
2018: 8.9m
2017: 8.1m
% change: +9.9
Place last year: 3
After surpassing 8m cases for the first time last year, Global Spirits-owned Khortytsa posted near double-digit growth in 2018 to reach 8.9m nine-litre-cases.
After restructuring its sales team in the US, Khortytsa increased its presence in stores across the country as it looks to develop its brands in the US.
2. Absolut
2018: 11.3m
2017: 11.3m
% change: -0.8
Place last year: 2
After a slight sales dip in 2018, Pernod Ricard-owned Absolut retains its position as the second best-selling vodka brand in the world.
While sales remained stable at 11.3m for the second year running, 2018 also saw Absolut launch a new marketing push fronted by Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson to celebrate the launch of its grapefruit-flavoured bottling.
The brand also ventured into the lower-abv market with the release of Absolut Juice Edition in the UK.
1. Smirnoff
2018: 26.0m
2017: 26.0m
% change: 0.0
Place last year: 1
Diageo-owned Smirnoff remains the world’s top-selling vodka brand after sales remained constant at 26.0m nine-litre-cases.
In July last year, Diageo announced it was investing in the brand to turnaround its declining sales. In the months that followed, the brand launched a celeb-packed campaign titled Welcome to the Fun% and launched new flavoured variants. Earlier this year, the brand targeted health-conscious drinkers with its range of zero-sugar infusions in the US to meet “consumers ‘evolving taste preferences”.