On-trade ‘fundamental’ to shaping future of spirits
The CEO of Zamora Company believes the on-trade will be “fundamental” to shaping the future of spirits and cautions that if alcohol consumption levels remain down for a prolonged period of time, it is likely “they will not come back”.
Speaking to The Spirits Business in June, Emilio Restoy, CEO of the Spanish drinks group, explained that a rise in at-home alcohol consumption has not been enough to offset the downturn of the on-trade.
Research has shown the majority of people have been drinking the same or less alcohol during lockdown than before the pandemic. If consumption levels remain down for a prolonged period of time, Restoy said “they will not come back”.
“The on-trade is fundamental for two reasons,” Restoy said. “One, it’s the basic way to interact with your consumer and present your product. Two, it is a profitable route to market.
“If this decreases, two things will happen: one it will be more difficult to interact with consumers and consumption could very well decrease.
“We sell things people don’t need; we sell things people want. There’s no need to have a whisky. If you want a whisky, you’re enjoying it either by yourself, as a couple or with a bunch of friends enjoying life.
“If this ‘with a bunch of friends enjoying life’ moment is less relevant, then in-home consumption is not as big and will not make up for the loss of out-of-home.”
Zamora Company’s portfolio includes Spanish liqueur Licor 43, Martin Miller’s Gin and Villa Massa limoncello.
Restoy said the Covid-19 pandemic will undoubtedly result in a sales fall for Zamora Company compared to the group’s original 2020 plan, but also added he is confident the company is well-equipped to weather the challenges of the coronavirus crisis.
“When this all started, by the end of March our vision was pretty clear: we are going to lose revenue and we are going to suffer in P&L [profit and loss] significantly,” Restoy said. “But we want to be out of this in 12 months, or 18 months, stronger than we were before with a higher market share.
“That’s why we have been investing strongly in online and in digital marketing, tastings and in the off-trade.
“We want to leave this period better than we started, and that’s very important if you are a family company because you are thinking about the long term.”
For the full interview with Restoy, see the August 2020 issue of The Spirits Business magazine, out now.
