North America drags Cuervo Q4 sales
The company behind Jose Cuervo Tequila saw its US and Canada revenue fall by double digits during the last quarter of 2024.
For the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024, Mexican spirits company Becle noted a 2% year-on-year decrease and a like-for-like sales drop of 10.5%, which is based on a fixed currency exchange rate.
The company’s total sales for 2024 fell by 0.9% year on year and were down by 2.9% on a like-for-like basis. Becle previously reported a nearly 41% income increase for the final three months of 2023.
Volume sales decreased by 8.4% in the last quarter of 2024 and by 6.2% for the full year.
Q4 sales in US and Canada fell by 14% (down by 24.7% on a like for like basis). The region represents 49.6% of the company’s sales.
The Jose Cuervo producer said the decrease in North America was mainly due to destocking efforts by distributors to ‘ensure better shipment and depletion alignment’ for 2025.
However, Q4 sales rose in Mexico by 2.8% with the market making up 29.8% of the group’s sales.
Sales across the rest of the world (representing 20.6% of group revenue) soared by 34.1%.
Net sales of the Jose Cuervo brand decreased by 5.7% during Q4 while the group’s other Tequila brands (which includes 1800 Tequila) collectively rose by 2.7%.
Sales of ‘other spirits’ in Q4, which includes Bushmills Irish whiskey and Kraken rum, were up by 2.1%.
Ready-to-drink (RTD) sales plunged by 31.2%.
Full-year performance
Looking across the 2024 full year, sales in the US and Canada, Cuervo’s biggest market with 57% of sales, grew by 0.7%.
The group noted that the favourable foreign currency effects from the depreciation of the Mexican peso against the US dollar boosted sales in North America.
Representing 25.2% of the group’s full-year sales, Mexico was down by 6.3%. The rest-of-the-world region dipped by 0.6%.
Full-year sales for the Jose Cuervo brand dropped by 2.9%, ‘other Tequila’ was up by 2.2% and the rest of the group’s spirits dipped by 0.1%. RTD sales fell by 12.2%.
The firm noted that its Tequila portfolio performed ‘strongly’ in North America, but RTDs suffered a double-digit drop due to ‘market saturation’ and competition from smaller formats.
Meanwhile, Jose Cuervo’s performance was affected by ‘distributor-level destocking efforts and increased promotional activity from lower-end brands’.
‘Modest’ growth
In a statement, the company said: “As we enter 2025, we face an industry landscape shaped by evolving market conditions.
“Following 2024’s industry contraction, our primary goal is to stabilise and build on last year’s market share gains. We will focus on aligning shipments with depletions, sustaining premiumisation efforts, and strengthening operational resilience.
“While we expect growth to be modest, we are committed to optimising performance through strategic execution, leveraging opportunities, and staying agile in the face of new challenges and consumer trends.”
Chief marketing officer Lander Otegui recently discussed the evolution of the Jose Cuervo Agave Project and how the brand’s large scale allows it to be at the forefront of sustainable advancements in Tequila.
Related news
Video: why Tequila is taking over
