WSWA’s SipSource Data For On-Premise Signals Full Recovery

Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America’s (WSWA’s) SipSource released the latest set of Channel Shifting Index (CSI) data that provides wine and spirits professionals access to channel performance data for wine and spirits categories/segments, price tiers, and U.S. regions that are easy to understand and relevant to successfully navigate the current environment.

WSWA’s SipSource is the most comprehensive source for channel performance and shifts —based on distributor depletion data across both off- and on-premise channels and sub-channels at the national and U.S. census division levels.

WSWA sipsource on-premise recovery
Courtesy of SipSource

The Latest SipSource CSI Tells Us

The spirits CSI index of 100 indicates that for three-months ending May 2022, the on-premise share of the spirits category is now in line with its share pre-COVID. While wine’s CSI of 97 is lagging somewhat, it still represents a steady and significant improvement. The on-premise consists of channels such as Restaurants, Bars/Nightclubs, Lodging, Recreation, and Transportation.

“This is telling us that overall, consumers are getting back to pre-COVID norms in terms of the proportion of their buying and consumption of wines and spirits occurring off-premise versus on-premise” said Danny Brager, SipSource analyst and industry veteran. “Living with COVID appears to largely be the new norm,” he added.

Regionally, the one area that stands out from the others in terms of the pace of on-premise recovery is the South Atlantic (where Florida the largest state) – for both wine and spirits. This region’s on-premise CSI is now above 100 over the last three months.

The on-premise recovery is particularly important for brands hoping to introduce themselves to the consumer in a channel long used for new product introductions. This is good news for those products that have traditionally relied on the on-premise channel for a large percentage of its volume. In particular, the segments below derive a minimum of 20 percent of their volume from the on-premise.

sipsource wswa on premise recovery
Courtesy of SipSource

While the relative importance of on- and off-premise channels is returning to pre-COVID levels, the spirits category overall continues to perform better than wine – growing faster than wine in the on-premise, and declining less than wine in the off-premise, for the past three months versus a year ago.

“What I’m watching closely now is the impact of inflation on consumer spending patterns as their wallets are squeezed,” added Brager. “Will consumers cut back on eating and drinking out? And, if so, how will that impact wine and spirits?”