Following the success of last year’s series of on-trade reports The Buyer is once again working in partnership with hospitality and drinks research specialists, CGA, to produce four more reports on key aspects of the restaurant, pub and bar sectors over the rest of the year. What makes these reports stand out is that they have been specifically tailored to tackle and analyse four of the key areas of growth and opportunity for the drinks and hospitality sector, with a particular focus on the wine category. The series starts with casual dining and what impact changes in the dynamics of the high street is having on this vital area of growth. This will be followed by further reports analysing changing consumer demand for different styles of wines, countries and price points; the biggest threats to wine from other drinks categories; and what are the key future trends that the industry needs to be on top of. The first report is available to buy now and the following editions will be released over the next three quarters of 2019. These can either be bought individually or as a money saving subscription bundle of two, three or all four. Here Richard Siddle explains what you can expect.
Get on top of the key wine and drinks trends with CGA and The Buyer’s new set of on-trade reports focused on shining the spotlight on crucial trends in the fast-changing wine category.
If you could pick out one word that sums up 2019 then you would not go too far wrong with ‘uncertainty’. The spectre of Brexit might still cast a dark shadow over the drinks and on-trade industries, but whilst so much of our futures remain in doubt and in the hands of MPs and Westminster, there are also steps we can take to ensure we are still very much on top of what we are doing in our businesses on a day-to-day basis.
One of the ways we can look to bring some level of certainty to what we are doing is investing in research and insights. Ensuring we have access to the most relevant information that will help us make the right decisions for our business. Brexit or no Brexit.
Which is why The Buyer has been working behind the scenes with the country’s leading research specialists into the on-trade, CGA, to produce a series of reports designed to help companies right across the sector. Whether you are a producer, supplier, importer, distributor or brand owner it is vital to be on top of the market and the operators you hope will list and then sell your wine.
Then there are the restaurants, bars and major on-trade operators themselves. What advice do they listen to? Too often they are the ones caught in the crossfire of the latest round of rising costs from rates, wages and now, in the wake of Brexit, increasing food, drink and service costs too.
It’s why the four reports in this series will look both at the market dynamics that restaurants and their suppliers are having to work in, but will also drill down into the actual wine varietals, the countries, the styles, the price points that are most in demand. Whilst also tackling difficult issues such as the intense competition there is now behind the back bar from other drinks categories, be it premium spirits and cocktails, craft beers and ciders, or the increasing array of low or no-alcohol brands that are all now giving wine a run for its money.
The reports look to combine wine category facts and figures with expert analysis to help suppliers, producers, drinks distributors, restaurants, bars and pubs make decisions about their own business challenges and opportunities.
Casual dining
The series kicks off with arguably the most important, and up to now most dynamic and fast moving of sectors, Casual Dining – Changes in the High Street.
The headline figures from this report make both encouraging and startling reading. For on the one hand the value of wine sales in casual dining restaurants has jumped by close to 7% in the last year, with nearly half of guests choosing to drink wine when dining out, but only a quarter of those guests actually rate the win choice as very good.
Data from this report highlights just how big this sector has become for wine. The 46% of consumers who regularly choose to drink wine in casual dining outlets is not only up on 2017, but is significantly higher than all other drinks categories, including lager (31%) and cocktails (21%). The report also looks at which type of casual dining restaurant is most tuned into wine, and picks out the Italian-focused brands such as Carluccio’s, Prezzo, Jamie’s Italian, Zizzi, Bella Italia and PizzaExpress as leading the way.
It also confirms consumers’ demand for better quality and premium wines, the importance of getting the wine list right with a range that really engages and captures the imagination of customers. The report also looks at how suppliers and restaurants can work better together to encourage these customers to raise their average spend and be more ambitious in their wine choices, whilst also encouraging those who are reluctant to drink wine to give it a go.
Around the world
This will be followed in the early summer by the second report: Global Origins and Price Polarisation. This will look closely at what are the countries, the regions and the styles of wine that consumers are increasingly turning to. What varieties are most in demand, and which ones are on the wane, and why. It will also look at movements in pricing and the balance of demand between premium and standard wines and which side of the fence restaurants and suppliers need to be on.
Up for the challenge
Then CGA and The Buyer will look at what are the key challenges facing wine and hospitality in the ‘Wine Threats: Competitive Categories’ report. This will examine just how much competition wine is now facing from all other drinks categories and what it is about them that is making them such attractive and dangerous competitors. With a particular focus on trends in premium spirits, cocktails, craft beer and fruit cider. It will also look to see where have got with Brexit by then.
Into the future
The final report in the series will look at ‘The Future for Wine’ and assess how the wine category will change over the next decade, be it through natural forces, changes in production, wine innovation, packaging, dispensing technology, product diversification and education.
How
Each of the reports in the series are based on a nationally representative sample of wine drinkers surveyed via CGA’s BrandTrack service, and industry data from its On Premise Measurement service. They also include commentary and analysis from The Buyer’s co-founder and editor-in-chief Richard Siddle.
Mark Newton, senior category development manager for wine at CGA, said: “Our new Wine Insight series provides a 360 degree view of the fast moving out of home wine drinking market. It shows how wine is flourishing in the dynamic casual dining sector, but also indicates that restaurants and suppliers could grow sales further if they properly understand consumers’ needs and habits. In such a competitive wine drinking market, intelligence like this is absolutely crucial to success.”
Richard Siddle, of The Buyer, said: “This new series of category reports from CGA is a great way to understand the key questions and changes currently facing the wine industry in the UK on-trade. Through a combination of industry leading data and expert insight they will help you to recognise opportunity, unlock potential and increase sales.”
Pricing
The reports are both individually priced, but offer a £900 saving when bought as a subscription package of four.
Individual report: £850 all excluding VAT
Two reports: £1,550
Three reports: £2,250
Four reports: £2,500
Reports are delivered in both PDF and Powerpoint formats.
* Subscriptions to CGA’s second series of Wine Insight reports are available to purchase now, with special existing client report rates also available. For more information contact Mark Newton at mark.newton@cga.co.uk.
