US spirits sales down 3.8% in January
Spirits sales in the US dropped by 3.8% in the year to January 2024, according to data from Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America’s (WSWA) SipSource tool.
The tool covers wine and spirits distributor sales for hundreds of thousands of on-trade and off-trade accounts in the US.
The firm’s analysts suggested the drop is an ‘expected outcome’ following a strong performance in January 2023, with more positive results expected for the year ahead.
Total wine and spirits declined by 5.9% in the same period and were down by 7.1% for the past three months.
Spirits fared better than wine, falling by 5% in the past three months, compared with wine’s 9%.
Although on-trade sales fell by 2.1% on the previous year, cocktails and Tequila grew in the category by 28.9% and 2.1% respectively.
The firm expects to see a stabilisation in the next two months, thanks to an extra shipping day due to the leap year and favourable comparisons with March 2023.
Last month, a SipSource report stated that the premiumisation trend was ‘dead’, with year-end losses for both wine and spirits.
Off-trade alcohol sales in the UK, however, grew by 18% by volume in February.
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