Lager in Ireland’s on-trade: Five CGA insights for the summer
“Lager sales always rise in line with the temperatures, so summer is a great time for suppliers and operators to cement loyalty, develop new brands and innovate”
As summer nears, suppliers and operators in Ireland’s on-trade are gearing up to capitalise on rising interest in lager. Here are five key insights from CGA by NIQ to help sharpen strategies in this crucial category.
Summer spike
CGA’s sales data shows how summer traditionally lifts lager sales. It attracts more than half of LAD serves across the island, and grows its share of the market from June to August by 1.5 and 1.0% in Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland respectively.
Refreshment the main appeal
Lager has become synonymous with summer drinking in pubs and bars. A third of consumers choose it ‘to refresh themselves’ when out, and the top traits they seek in a lager are ‘refreshing, ‘crisp’ and ‘light’—so these should be key features of all promotional strategies in the summer months.
Loyal drinkers
With two thirds of lager consumers drinking the category every or almost every time they go out, suppliers have a loyal and reliable core of drinkers to target. This is especially the case in pubs, where lager accounts for 46% of sales in both Republic Ireland and Northern Ireland.
Regional variations
The scale of the summer upswing in sales varies from province to province, and venues in rural and suburban areas are more likely to draw people out to drink lager in beer gardens and terraces. For example, Connaught and Munster gain more share of the category between June and August, while growth in Belfast is outpaced by the rest of Ulster in Northern Ireland.
Bottled serves gain share
Draught dominates the lager category, attracting nearly nine in ten of all serves. But the packaged segment attracts more interest in the summer, and earns 11.4% and 13.5% of sales in Ireland and Northern Ireland—both up by 0.4 percentage points compared to the rest of the year.
“Lager sales always rise in line with the temperatures, so summer is a great time for suppliers and operators to cement loyalty, develop new brands and innovate,” says Sian Brennan, CGA’s client director, Ireland. “Successful strategies will help increase share not just in the main summer months but all year round, as consumers continue their habits into autumn and winter. Taking a deep dive into sales trends and consumers’ summer preferences is the vital first step towards achieving growth.”
