Alcoholic mixer sales drop 4.3% year-on-year

Sales of mixers in the UK have dropped 4.3% to £109.8m in the last quarter according to figures from CGA.

Furthermore, mixers have steadily lost share in the wider soft drinks category and now account for 10.4% of sales, down by 0.9 percentage points from last year.

This downward is a result of a sharp drop in gin sales since the start of the pandemic.

Four years ago, gin held a 22.8% share of spirit sales but that has now tumbled to 18.3%.

Gin was hit harder by Covid lockdowns than most drinks categories as consumers switched to drinking gin and tonics at home and opting for other drinks when they went out.

While the mixers category has generally struggled, premium brands have gone against this trend.

Premium packaged mixers accounted for 62.0% of all packaged mixer sales in the last quarter which was a rise of 2.3 percentage points.

Upmarket options have become much more visible in pubs and bars, and data shows around 63,000 licensed premises now stock at least one premium brand.

Matthew Meek, senior client manager, said: “The positive premiumisation trend in the mixers category has picked up where it left off before COVID-19. When they returned to pubs, bars and restaurants after months of lockdowns, consumers were ready to celebrate and catch up on the drinks and occasions they had missed.

“Although spending has been squeezed lately by the cost of living crisis, this treat mentality is still very much evident. While some people are drinking out less frequently, they are often ready to spend more when they do so, which leads to trade-ups from mainstream mixer brands to premium ones.”

More than half of mixed drinks consumers say they are very likely to pay more for a better quality spirit and mixer when they are out.