Modest bar alcohol sales forecast for 2015

Alcohol sales in bars and restaurants are predicted to grow modestly in 2015 as a result of “greater consumer confidence”, according to new research from Technomic.

Forecasters have predicted alcohol sales will grow modestly in 2015

According to projections from Technomic, released by the group’s BarTAB Report and Adult Beverage Insights Group, on-premise alcohol sales are forecast to rise by 2.7% next year, more than what is predicted for off-premise stores.

“Conditions are improving, and with lower gas prices and better consumer confidence, we’re continuing to see positive movement in consumer spending away from home,” commented David Henkes, vice president at Technomic and director of the firm’s adult beverage practice. “However, there’s still a lot of lost ground to make up relative to how the industry was performing to the recession.”

Moreover, bars and clubs, which represent approximately two-fifths of alcohol sales, are expected to under-perform many other sectors of the on-trade industry, keeping overall dollar growth expectations low.

“Dollar growth is driven largely by price increases and gains in certain categories such as craft beer and whiskeys including Bourbon, Irish and single malt Scotch,” added Henkes.

Wine is expected to be the achieve the greatest sales growth rate, followed by spirits.

In terms of cocktails, the fastest-growing cocktails on leading chain restaurant menus are beer cocktails (39%), Bellini Mimosa (30%), Sangria (20%), classic cocktails (16%) and Manhattans (12%).

“We continue to stress to our clients the importance of a strong adult beverage programme – it drives customer satisfaction, and it’s obviously a source of incremental profitability,” said Henkes.

“Many restaurant concepts that outperform the industry are emphasizing adult beverage, and we contend opportunities exist to leverage spirits, wine and beer to achieve greater traffic, sales and profits in 2015.”