Over half of consumers to visit on-trade over Christmas
The drink options typically associated with Christmas also see a boost compared to the rest of the year as consumers celebrate the festive season with mulled cider, mulled wine and liqueurs.
CGA by NielsenIQ’s latest Opus on-trade research finds consumers keen to celebrate in their favourite pubs, bars and restaurants – with younger consumers over-indexing when it comes to on-trade Christmas plans. This consumer segment – those aged between 18 and 34 – are highly engaged with the on-trade year-round, spending more out-of-home each month and being 10% more likely to visit at least weekly versus the average.
As for the choice of Christmas drinks, spirits are likely to see a significant increase in demand from consumers, it predicts – while Cocktails are also a more popular drink option amongst festive consumers who’re more likely to pay extra for a better-quality drink.
The drink options typically associated with Christmas also see a boost compared to the rest of the year as consumers celebrate the festive season with mulled cider, mulled wine and liqueurs.
The majority of consumers will choose drink-led venues over the Christmas period to ‘get into the Christmas spirit’, while ‘festive celebrations with friends’ becomes the occasion for which most consumers visit the on-trade. Of the consumers who visit specific venues over the festive season, over a third also highlight that this behaviour has ‘become a tradition’ over the Christmas period.
These repeat behaviours represent a valuable opportunity for outlets, states CGA by NielsenIQ.
More insights are available in CGA by NielsenIQ’s Christmas Report, set for publication in early 2023. The report will highlight the performance, growth and opportunities within the on-trade in Ireland utilising consumer surveys conducted pre- and post-Christmas alongside volumetric sales data.
“Understanding the Christmas consumer has never been more important, with the festive season one of the most crucial times of the year for the On Premise,” said Sian Brennan, CGA by NielsenIQ’s Client Director for Ireland, “Our new Christmas report will provide a clear view of the Christmas consumer, their behaviours during the seasonal period and how suppliers and operators can best prepare for Christmas 2023.”
