ProWein: the future of spirits
Drawing on insights from more than 200 industry professionals, the inaugural ProSpirits Report – The Future of Spirits examines the state of the industry, challenges and opportunities ahead, and how to achieve success.
It is a particularly exciting time to work in the spirits industry. While challenges abound, so too do opportunities. Consumers’ drinking behaviours are quickly evolving; new product development has extended to entirely new spirits categories, such as low and no. As a result, sharing knowledge and data to keep ahead of drinking developments has arguably never been more important.
The world’s most important wine and spirits trade fair, ProWein, confirmed its commitment to supporting the spirits industry when it launched ProSpirits in 2024. The dedicated spirits hall at ProWein was a roaring success – and returned bigger and better in 2025, accompanied by the long-running ‘Same But Different’ hall, dedicated to up-and-coming producers. Approximately 500 exhibitors from 53 countries showcased their finest goods during the three-day event, from whisky, gin and rum to Tequila, alcohol-free products, and ready-to-drink options.
“In difficult sales times, ProWein shows it is the industry’s go-to trade fair where producers can successfully plan their business year,” commented Marius Berlemann, chief operating officer of Messe Düsseldorf. “ProWein’s long-standing international profile and expertise is impressive proof of this and underpins its outstanding position in the highly competitive global trade fair market. We are very proud to have been on the market for over 30 years and to have developed such a unique networking and sales event.”
ProWein 2025 also marked another first for the event – the launch of the inaugural ProSpirits Report. Commissioned by ProWein, the 2025 edition of the report, The Future of Spirits, was led by professor Dr Simone Loose, from Geisenheim University, Department of Wine and Beverage Business Research. The report was compiled following extensive research. To begin with, Dr Loose and the ProSpirits team engaged with industry professionals to identify key issues to include in the survey. This was then distributed to ProSpirits exhibitors and visitors, and more than 200 recipients responded to the survey, sharing information from 45 countries. Respondents covered a diverse range of firms, from large international companies to smaller businesses with a more regional and local focus.
The ProSpirits Report 2025 is split into four key segments: Current Condition & Future Opportunities; Future Trends in the Spirits Sector; Expectations for Market Segments & Sales Channels; and International Spirits Markets. In each section, the results report on the findings from producers – brand owners/spirits makers – and trade professionals (everything from distributors to wholesalers and retailers).
Expectations for 2025
In the first section of the report, the data focuses on the current economic situation and expectations for 2025. The first question – how do you assess the current economic condition of your company? – returned answers that are more optimistic than many recent conversations in the trade might indicate. Five percent of the trade answered, ‘very good’, compared with 6% of producers. A total of 31% of the trade and 33% of producers said, ‘good’, while 52% of the trade and 37% of producers said, ‘satisfactory’.
Optimism was evident when respondents were asked what the key opportunities for revenue growth in the spirits sector were in 2025. Innovation, including new products and trends, was the biggest opportunity, selected by 70% of the trade and 64% of producers. Premiumisation followed, noted by 52% of trade respondents and 46% of producers. New markets and investing in emerging regions was of high importance for producers (55%), but less so for the trade (26%).
As the report progressed to the next segment, Future Trends in the Spirits Sector, low and no was highlighted as a key category to watch. The report noted: “Producers and the spirits trade differ partially in their outlook on future trends. The spirits trade sees the greatest potential for rum, whiskey and alcohol-free ‘spirits’, while spirits producers expect strong performance form low-alcohol spirits, ready-to-drink (RTD) beverages and alcohol-free ‘spirits’.”
Dr Loose added: “In five years, the sector expects alcohol-free ‘spirits’ to reach 10% market-volume share and 8% market value – remarkable given that the legal definition of spirits still requires alcohol content. This underscores why innovation is seen as the strongest growth driver (70% of the trade, 64% of producers).”
Rum, however, came out on top as the spirit the trade expects to perform well in the next two years, with 62% of respondents choosing the spirit, along with 44% of producers.
“Industry experts identify authentic storytelling, unique production methods, and regional identity as the key future trends in the spirits sector,” the report noted. “Following closely behind are craft and artisanal spirits, as well as mixology and ready-to-drink (RTD) beverages.”
A need to improve digital means of working, particularly regarding marketing, was noted by the majority of respondents. Seventy percent of all those surveyed said digital tools were essential for effective market segmentation. However, “opinions on the role of artificial intelligence in strengthening consumer relationships remain divided”, the report noted. “Due to the varying composition of international and local players, as well as differing levels of direct-to-consumer engagement, perspectives on the effectiveness of segmentation also vary.”
This was explored further in the next section of the ProSpirits Report: Market Segments & Sales Channels. How will different market segments evolve over the next two years? The overarching response from both trade and producers was that most expect stability, however more respondents predict decline than growth. Premium spirits and low-and-no ‘spirits’ provided the greatest reasons for optimism, the data showed. For premium spirits, 48% of producers believe they will increase by 2026, along with 47% of the trade. And when it comes to zero and low-alcohol ‘spirits’ and alternatives, 65% of producers expect the category to increase by 2026, along with 78% of the trade.
Navigating new markets
When it comes to international markets, most spirits producers (81%) view exporting to new markets as a key opportunity for increasing sales. However, for producers, their “ability to enter new export markets depends on their size and level of internationalisation. Smaller local spirit producers face greater challenges.”
To successfully navigate market challenges over the next two years, what brand qualities will be important? For Dr Loose: “Storytelling is key, incorporating elements of lifestyle appeal, heritage, and social connection – experts agree on a broad range of essential factors.” Both the trade and producers said storytelling was the biggest factor that would drive successful spirits marketing in the future (67% combined), followed by lifestyle appeal (62%) and heritage and tradition (60%). The industry has many headwinds ahead of it. But by sharing more data and knowledge, the industry will be far better equipped to successfully work through future challenges together, and harness opportunities to achieve their growth goals.
ProWein extends its sincere thanks to all participants of the inaugural ProSpirits Survey. The full report will be published and made publicly available in early May. It will be followed by the ProSpirits Business Talks – a platform for exchanging insights and perspectives with leading voices from the industry. We are already looking ahead to the next edition of the ProSpirits Survey in 2026.
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