11 Feb 2014 Flavour fatigue impacts the vodka sector
According to ‘just-drinks on-trend: vodka flavours review‘, while the flavoured sector has provided the growth within a becalmed overall vodka category in recent years, the growth in the flavoured market has been slowing down.
The flavoured vodka market increased in 2012 by 5.6% to 23.3m cases, but this represented a slowdown from the 7.8% achieved in 2011 and the 9% growth registered in 2010.
While the growth in flavoured vodka is declining, the number of new flavoured product launches per year has continued to rise, according to the just-drinks Launchpad database, although the pace of new product development is also slowing.
Some 21 new flavoured products hit the market in 2011, with more than double the following year (44). While 2013 saw 50 new flavoured launches, the just-drinks report points out that this represents only a 14% increase from 2012, versus the 110% change seen between 2011 and 2012.
“This suggests that brand owners are reacting but are behind the consumption trend curve,” the report warns.
Another interpretation of this data is that manufacturers are simply reacting behind the growth curve, and some are coming a little late to the party.
However, it is clearly noticeable that, as growth becomes a little harder to come by, the flavour choices are becoming increasingly outlandish or esoteric. Among the flavours to hit the market in recent months are a Wild Honey vodka from Diageo’s Smirnoff brand and the addition of Vanilla Bean and Georgia Peach flavours to Campari’s Skyy Infusions range.
Arguably the most bizarre introduction was the addition last October of a brandy-flavoured variant to Serge Imports’ Exclusiv vodka range.
That the most novel offerings are being seen in the US is perhaps not a surprise. The US accounts for around 50% of the global flavoured vodka market and has led the way in the establishment of the sector.
However, as a larger, more mature market for flavoured vodkas, the slowdown in growth in the US has been more pronounced. The US flavoured sector grew by 27.05% in 2011 to 13.84m cases, but growth declined to 17.87% in 2012. It should also be noted that even though the growth rate for flavoured vodkas fell in 2012, the overall vodka sector in the US still managed 6.03% growth.
For further details on this research, click here.