The latest edition of CGA by NIQ’s Daily Drinks Tracker, which analyses sales at managed licensed premises across Britain, revealed trade was running ahead of last year’s level for ten out of 11 weeks between February and late April, with the beer and cider categories flourishing.
However, that good run came to a halt in the seven days to Saturday 10 May, when sales finished 8% behind the equivalent period in 2024.
This was attributed to damp weather across much of the country, which kept drinks sales down throughout the week and negated the benefits of the long Bank Holiday weekend.
Marginal growth
Better weather in 2024 also made for tough comparisons.
All major drinks categories measured in the Tracker were behind, with cider (down 14%), spirits (down 11%) and wine (down 9%) the worst hit.
Beer (down 5%) was slightly brighter thanks to brief breaks in the weather.
Though the Tracker showed the following week, to Saturday 17 May, was a little better for the on trade, with marginal year-on-year growth in drinks sales of 0.3%.
However, this was still well below the current 3.5% rate of inflation, as measured by the Office for National Statistics.
Trading jumped by 10% and 15% on Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 May but was largely flat on other days.
Rollercoaster fortnight
Cider finished a rollercoaster fortnight with 10% growth, but spirits (down 5%) and wine (down 9%) had another challenging week.
The previous tracker showed venues enjoyed 12% like-for-like growth in the week to Saturday 3 May - the best performance so far this year.
CGA by NIQ commercial director Rachel Weller said: “Spring and summer drinks sales are always tied closely to the weather, and after a warn April, May sales have dropped in line with the temperatures.
“The dip in early May also suggests that consumers’ confidence remains limited, and that some disposable incomes were used up during the sunshine.
“Nevertheless, the wider picture shows pubs have been on a good run, and suppliers can be optimistic for the key summer months—as long as the weather plays its part.”
