Global premium market is back on track

The global premium-and-above (US$20+) Champagne and spirits market  grew by more than 52m 9-litre cases between 2001 and 2011.

The global financial crisis caused a brief blip in the market’s growth, but the increasing thirst for top end products has not yet abated. The premium-and-above market continues to grow, reaching almost 137m cases in 2011.
 
The premium market (US$20-30) alone  grew by over 5m cases in 2011 to reach a total of 97.5m cases, and rose in value by almost US$4bn, bringing the market’s total value to US$35.9bn, according to the IWSR Global Premium Report 2012.
 
Much of this volume is still concentrated in the US market where consumers have long been trading-up to premium brands; with a market share of 37.7%, the US remains the largest consumer of premium-and-above products, having reached nearly 52m cases in total in 2011.
 
Premiumisation has also become a key trend across the globe. Emerging markets such as Brazil, South Africa and India also contributed significantly to the expansion of the premium-and-above segment as a result of the strengthening economies in these countries, as well as increased product availability and a broadening aspirational consumer base.
 
While the premium market (US$20-30), which accounts for 71.3% of the overall premium-and-above market (US$20+), rose by 5.6% in 2011, the super-premium segment (US$30-50) saw an increase of 11.1%; the ultra-premium market (US$50-100) grew ahead of both, increasing by 13.6%. This shows that not only are consumers trading up, but they are searching out ever-more prestigious products. Many of the large multinational companies are responding to this demand by amplifying their range of premium-and-above offerings, while an explosion of smaller niche and craft  brands have also recently emerged on the market.

1 October 2012 - Felicity Murray