UK soft drinks sales hold up despite recession

Britvic Soft Drinks Report: c-store sales hold up

Sales of soft drinks in UK supermarkets and convenience stores rose by 1% to £6.1bn in 2008 despite the credit crunch and poor summer weather.

Take-home sales outperformed the on-premise market, which declined by 4% in value to £2.3bn.

Total sales, across both channels, were down 1% in value terms and 2% by volume.

The figures are revealed in the 2009 Britvic Soft Drinks Report and show that soft drinks are still a staple of the mid-sized shopping basket even as economic conditions deteriorate.

In the take-home channel, energy and sports drinks are driving market growth as consumers seek out products with specific functional benefits such as added vitamins, glucose or stimulants. Sales of glucose and stimulant drinks grew by 12% to £522m last year with market leader Lucozade up 4% to £228m.

Cola, squash and juice drinks proved to be resilient in recession and the top brands held up well as consumers opted for names they trust rather than switch to own label.

Tropicana and PepsiCo were star performing brands in 2008, both recording double digit growth – 16% and 15% respectively.

But the success of smoothies faltered after several years of strong growth. Take-home sales fell 20% by value. Sales of bottled water were also hit by the poor summer and the economic climate and declined by 9% in value.

Moody: soft drinks are a staple purchase

Paul Moody, Britvic chief executive and president of the British Soft Drinks Association, said: “Soft drinks continue to be a staple purchase on which consumers are reluctant to compromise. And, as a soft drink is small-ticket, cash item offering affordable everyday enjoyment, they have little reason to.

“In the downturn so far, it’s the big brands and traditionally popular sub-categories like cola, squash and juice drinks that consumers seem particularly unwilling to do without.”

The report also reveals the latest soft drinks sales trends from around the world.

In the US market, sales values grew by 1% in 2008 with juice and juice drinks driving growth. Bottled water, meanwhile, declined by 2% but cola sales grew by 4%.

In Ireland, soft drinks grew 2% in value terms with cola up 3% and energy drinks up 7%. Fruit carbonates declined slightly and bottled water lost 2% in value. Pure fruit juice, however, rose by 2%.

Germany enjoyed the most buoyant soft drinks in northern Europe last year with value sales up by 5%. Sports and energy drinks rocketed by 15% but juice sales declined.

In France carbonated drinks helped to drive an overall 2% rise in value but France’s leading sub category, water, declined by 5% in value.

In India soft drinks recorded double-digit growth in 2008 with value up by 25%. Bottled water, up 29%, and carbonates, up 19% by volume, were leading categories.