FDBusiness.com

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association’s latest Market Report shows that Britain’s love for a gin and tonic is not restricted to the summer months as sales continue to fizz into the festive season. The report reveals gin sales in pubs, bars and restaurants (on trade) in 12 months (to 1/10/16) went up +19%, on the same period last year, worth £619 million.

The public’s unquenchable thirst for the quintessentially British spirit is also reflected in the amount of gin sold in our shops, supermarkets and off licences (off trade) which in 12 months (to 5/11/16) went up +13%, worth £437 million.

Gin broke the £1 billion sales mark in the on-and-off trade for the first time ever in the UK in 2016, 6 months ahead of forecasts, making it a record breaking year for gin. For six consecutive quarters, on trade sales of gin have seen double digit growth, outperforming every other spirits category.

Since the first WSTA Market Report released in 2012, gin sales in pubs, bars and restaurants have increased by £300 million – the equivalent of an annual boost of £3,750 extra to every UK pub.

Sales of gin in shops, supermarkets and off licences have also increased by 68% since 2012.

283,000 hectolitres, the equivalent of 40 million bottles, of gin have been sold in the on and off trade in UK in the last twelve months which works out as 1.12 billion gin and tonics.

This year’s volume sales of gin have gone up the equivalent of an extra 7 million bottles compared to 2012, which is the equivalent of around 200 million G&Ts.

Trends in government data show indisputably that the UK has been drinking ever more responsibly over the last ten years – with consumption dropping by a fifth.

With the market shrinking and gin sales booming it shows more and more customers are choosing premium products, like gin, as their chosen tipple.

Britain can also boast that 3 out of every 4 bottles of gin imported around the world are from the UK. British gin is now sold overseas in 139 countries around the world with America, Canada, Spain and Germany buying the most.

UK gin brands have benefited from America’s love for hit shows like Downton Abbey and the James Bond franchise helping to sell £159 million worth of British gin to the Americans in 2015. British gin exports to the USA have risen by a staggering 553% in the last decade.

Miles Beale, Chief Executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association.

40 new distilleries have opened in 2016 (up to 1/12/16) – according to the HMRC – which, when added to the 56 opened in 2015, means there are close 100 new distilleries opening in the UK in two years. In 2010 there were only 116 distilleries in existence in the UK, according to HMRC.

Miles Beale, Chief Executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, says: “There are many reasons why people may not feel like celebrating 2016 but the WSTA are pleased to give you something happy to reflect on – 2016 can now be remembered as the ‘Great British Gin Take Off’. We hope that government supports our innovative gin makers who have driven an extraordinary increase in UK exports, up 166% since 2000.”

He adds: “We would like to remind government that cutting excise duty boosts business and brings more money into the Treasury. Following the cut in spirits duty in the 2015 budget, spirits duty income increased on the previous year by £125m (+4.1%) from April 2015 to March 2016 inclusive.The UK spirit industry is one of the most heavily taxed in Europe with 76% of a bottle of spirits accounted for by tax, the 4th highest duty rate for spirits in the EU.”