- The North American liquor industry benefitted from a surge in revenue growth in 2020, in spite of widespread restaurant, bar closures
- U.S. distilled spirits gross revenues rose by 7.7% last year, the biggest percentage increase in 18 years with sales of tequila rising by 17.4% YoY
- Splash Beverage Group has benefitted from industry’s growth trends, seeing its quarterly sales growth soar nearly 10-fold between Q1-Q42020
- Splash Beverage has looked to diversify its product portfolio to benefit from ‘off-premise’ sales, including through recent acquisition of ‘Copa Di Vino’
With restaurants and bars shut across much of the United States for the majority of 2020, it would be only natural to assume that the North American liquor industry would have suffered alongside it; a study carried out in 2018 showed that on-premise alcoholic sales in establishments such as bars or restaurants accounted for over a gargantuan $147 billion in sales or 53% of total US alcohol revenues (https://ibn.fm/XpR0i). However, the experience over the past 12 months has been anything but normal. Splash Beverage Group (OTCQB: SBEV), a holding company for a leading portfolio of beverage companies, has been one of the players confounding expectations, having reported cumulative sales of $2.975 million in 2020 – while simultaneously seeing quarterly sales rise nearly tenfold between the first and fourth quarter of the year (https://ibn.fm/Avxhb).
Though impressive, Splash Beverage Group’s strong results may not have come to fruition without the supportive underlying trends witnessed within the U.S. alcoholic beverage industry. The United States Distilled Spirits Council reported that U.S. distilled spirits gross revenues rose by 7.7 percent in 2020, the biggest percentage increase in 18 years and the biggest dollar increase on record (https://ibn.fm/lxJOd). Although restaurant and bar closures contributed to a decline in alcoholic beverage sales during the spring of 2020, monthly consumer spending data showed that a rebound in retail sales combined with a partial recovery in bar and restaurant beverage sales (assisted by several states changing liquor laws to allow them to sell take-away beverages) had driven overall sales higher by the summer (https://ibn.fm/vpTHE).
There was also a notable shift in the type of alcohol being demanding. Whereas the volume of cordials (i.e., liqueurs, amari, etc.) sold declined by 1.8% last year as bars purchased fewer mixers for their cocktails, sales of tequila and mezcal soared, with the alcohol sub-category seeing total sales rise by 17.4% in 2020. Splash Beverage was a particular beneficiary of the trend through increased sales of its SALT Naturally Flavored Tequila brand.
With social distancing regulations still in force across much of the nation, Splash Beverage has sought to increase its emphasis on off-premise channel initiatives as a way to boost revenues for the group. In addition to announcing that its SALT Naturally Flavored tequila had been approved by Walmart in August of last year (https://ibn.fm/SMmkN), Splash Beverage recently completed the acquisition of Copa Di Vino, the nation’s largest ‘wine by the glass’ manufacturer. The company boasts a retail distribution footprint amounting to over 13 thousand outlets across the country (https://ibn.fm/3BKnD).
“Due to the conditions of the current pandemic and social distancing, our primary focus remains on off-premise channel initiatives and we are enjoying growth here,” said Splash Beverage CEO Robert Nistico regarding the company’s recent strategic moves. “We anticipate as bars, restaurants and hotels begin to open, we will experience growth with our relationships in on premise channels.”
For more information, visit the company’s website at www.SplashBeverageGroup.com.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to SBEV are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/SBEV
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