The post-Covid drinks industry has been dominated by talk of decreasing sales, shrinking budgets, and even layoffs. This doom-and-gloom forecasting proclaims that people just aren’t drinking the way they used to, but if you talk to people in the trade, they’re not really seeing that much of a decline. Not when sales figures are compared to those from 2018 and 2019, demonstrating that, actually, most companies in the drinks industry are doing just fine.
During the pandemic, alcohol brands grew at rapid speeds as consumers sought out more premium options to drink while at home. It’s easy to look at sales data from 2020 and 2021 versus current sales data and claim that alcohol is doomed, but this effectively ignores the enormous variable that impacted those increased sales in the first place: a pandemic.
As decreasing sales impact stock prices, big brands are moving to readjust their expectations to save face on Wall Street.
On this episode of the “VinePair Podcast,” Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss why so many of the biggest companies in beverage alcohol continue to compare current sales and trends to the peak of the pandemic, despite the fact that most of that entire period was a total anomaly. Tune in for more.
Joanna is reading: With Spinoffs and Expansions, Craft Cocktail Bars Enter Their ‘Marvel Era’
Zach is reading: At Modern Cocktail Bars, It’s Every Drink, Everywhere, All at Once. Is That Such a Bad Thing?
Adam is reading: We Asked 6 Bartenders: What’s the Most Overrated Bourbon? (2024)