The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported there were 10.1 million job openings in the economy at the end of June. This is by far the record amount of job openings the economy has ever had. “This historically elevated level makes clear that we have a severe worker shortage that threatens what should be a prolonged economic boom,” says Curtis DuBay, senior economist, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Read more here.
Vintage Wine Estates is redefining “shareholder value” to go beyond simply rising stock prices. I interviewed Jessica Kogan, chief marketing and chief digital officer, on how its Shareholder Passport program came to be, and the extra benefits it offers investors. You can access it here on our Beverage Barons website.
SweetWater Brewing Co. announced its market expansion across the state of Michigan, further accelerating the nation’s 11th largest craft brewer into the Great Lakes states. SweetWater’s high-quality craft brews, distributed by O&W, Inc., are now available for purchase on draft and in cans, and can be found in local restaurants, bars, grocery chains, liquor stores and other retail establishments wherever “the fishin’s good.”
“SweetWater’s latest venture into Michigan is an exciting one, and we’re thrilled new brew drinkers can now embrace our motto “Don’t Float the Mainstream!” with us,” said Brian Miesieski, Chief Marketing Officer at SweetWater. “By September, SweetWater beers are expected to be available in every state east of Colorado. We’re working hard to make it a reality for craft beer lovers from coast to coast to have the chance to enjoy an always fresh, and always tasty brew with the stand-out, high-quality beer SweetWater is known to deliver.”
This new market is the 36th state, plus Washington, D.C., that SweetWater has dived into, representative of the expansive growth the leading brewing company has experienced over the last several years. Michigan is the 11th new market that the 420 lifestyle-focused brewery has entered this year – joining Colorado, Minnesota, North Dakota, Maine, Nebraska, Wisconsin, New York, Iowa, Vermont and New Hampshire to SweetWater’s growing list of new states where its award-winning lineup of year-round, seasonal and specialty beers are now available.
During select Saturdays through the remainder of the regular season, soccer fans 21 and older will have access to up to $50 in rideshare credits to and from some of the biggest matches of the year.
“We saw a tremendous response from fans who took advantage of the Captain Morgan ‘Safe Rides’ around the Fourth of July to help them get to and from the games safely,” said Sam Salameh, Vice President, Captain Morgan. “The safety of fans is paramount, and we hope by extending ‘Safe Rides’ to more cities across the country, MLS fans can cheer on their favorite teams knowing they have a safe way of getting home.”
Even as more states reopen and allow for some form of on-premise consumption, Covid cases continue to expand — both among the unvaccinated and among those who were vaccinated. That’s bad news for on-premise retailers, because a new study of consumer insights conducted by Drizly before the surge found that 70% of respondents said they are planning to continue to drink less away from home, and 30% are poised to do so more at home… for the remainder of the year, at least.
Other key findings from the study:
In a finding that may spell bad news for new-product launches, 72% of current Drizly users and 50% of non-Drizly users anticipate at least 50% of their alcohol shopping will take place online, vs. in store, in the next year. For context, research conducted only last year found that 45% of consumers of legal drinking age questioned the legality of buying alcohol online. The past four months have both steepened the education and trial curves, with new users growing up to 1700% above baseline on Drizly since March of 2020.
Cocktail culture is taking hold at home – More than half (52%) of those surveyed said they have made more cocktails at home during the past three months, and 54% predict that they’ll keep mixing things up more in their kitchens and backyards this summer and beyond. Indeed, sales of mixers, bitters and other cocktail ingredients have risen sharply on Drizly since mid-March, with mixers, syrups and bitters becoming the fastest growing category on Drizly.
Hard seltzer, though now mainstream, is still dynamic – While a smaller share of imbibers plan affirmatively to drink hard seltzer this year than last year (38% vs. 52%). This is counter to the sales trends we continue to see but one could wonder whether it is a crack in the armor of seltzer. However, another 31% say they may drink seltzer. We can expect at least with existing converts buying in larger volumes and high-profile newbies like Bud Light Seltzer and Corona Seltzer entering the scene that there is still likely an expansion of the category ahead. This has played out thus far on Drizly, where hard seltzer sales are up on Drizly at 3.67% of total platform sales as of June 1, 2020, compared to 3.08% at the beginning of June in 2019. Hard seltzer drinkers and those planning to try will most likely do so at the expense of cider, hard lemonade and wine.
Gen Z is thirsty for variety and education – More than half (52%) of Gen Z members surveyed have tried at least one new alcohol brand since mid-March, outpacing the adventurous tendencies of Millennials, Gen Xers and Boomers. What’s more, Gen Z proved thirstiest for knowledge about adult beverages, topping their older cohorts in wanting more information about cocktail craft (48%), white wine (31%) and emerging spirits like Mezcal and Soju.
Long Drink, the brand built on the heritage of the legendary Finnish alcohol category of long drinks, best described as citrus soda with real liquor, said it expanded its distribution agreement with Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits (SGWS) into Illinois.
The expansion announcement comes after the brand’s successful debut across California, Arizona, Florida and South Carolina earlier this year. In expanding its partnership with SGWS, Long Drink is significantly growing the brand’s national footprint in Illinois at over 300 accounts in just a few weeks.
