Effect of deep discounting on the wane
Deep discounting on wine by UK retailers may be having less impact on consumer behaviour, according to a new report.
Wine Intelligence claims that signs of a less promotion-obsessed nation have been revealed in its two new UK wine consumer focused reports.
Price promotions are no longer the main purchasing consideration for the 28.3 million UK regular wine drinkers, according to the UK Landscapes Report.
Promotions remain an important choice cue but grape variety is back as the number one factor in the decision-making process.
Drinkers are paying more attention to the alcoholic content of what they are buying compared to last year and appeal of the bottle or label design has also become more influential, according to the WI report.
UK consumers are conscious of paying more for their wine these days, thanks largely to consistent increases in excise duty over the past five years.
Almost a quarter of regular wine drinkers say they venture beyond the £6 mark in the off-trade, while in the on-trade the proportion spending £15 or more is up to 17%.
The numbers of more involved profiles of wine drinkers are growing, according to UK Portraits – the Wine Intelligence wine drinker segmentation report.
‘Adventurous Connoisseurs’, the middle-aged confident wine drinkers, and loved by the trade for their high spend and openness to trying new wine, have grown significantly since 2007 and account now for around 1-in-10 of all UK wine drinkers.
‘Generation Treaters’, the younger big-spending wine drinkers, now represent a similar sized group to their older counterparts.
These two attractive consumer groups together now represent 20% of the population but account for 34% of the total spend on wine in the UK.
Graham Holter, associate director of Wine Intelligence and editor of Drinks International’s ‘Most Admired Wine Brands’ supplement, said: “There is a significant (and arguably growing) mass of people who aren’t solely obsessed with discounts, who seek out specialist retailers and unfamiliar wines, and who don’t entirely rely on the old certainties.
"Get to know these consumers a little better, and suddenly the UK becomes a far more inviting prospect than some of the top line figures would suggest."
