flavors and is all-natural, organic and 125
calories per serving.
Trading Up
Cocktails are perceived as more premium
to drink than beer, a point that holds
true in the spirit-based RTS category as
well. According to DISCUS, 20% of the
category is premium, and that is a segment
that is growing, especially the “skinny”
brands notes Streeter at ABC.
At all three Yankee Spirits locations,
Tesauro says the RTD and RTS category
has become highly competitive, with
innovations in various packaging and
flavors coming faster than most retailers
can handle. “Over the last several
years, we’ve seen real trade-up in this
category with more premium offerings.
Where value brands like Ice Box and
Chi Chi’s once dominated, we now see
more premium offerings like the Cuervo
Golden Margarita, Bailey’s Mudslide
and the offerings from Bacardi—all of
which retail in our store in the mid to
high teens for a 1.75 liter. We now have
750
mls of Skinnygirl flying out the door
at the same price as a 1.75 liter of the
value brands.”
Staying Power
With cocktail culture in full swing, the
average consumer will continue to experi-
ment with premade drinks. The benefits
of price and convenience coupled with
more at-home entertaining all point to
more supplier investment in the category.
Elsewhere in the world, bottled cock-
tails are more commonplace than in the
U.S.; Australia, Russia and Japan account
for 75% of the global RTD/RTS volume.
The United States accounts for a mere
2%—
a number that may well creep up
with the more premium offerings entering
the category.
Keeping track of the various premade
cocktail brands is no easy task. The
chart we’ve compiled of some of the
most common spirit-based RTS cocktails
offers just a snapshot of this flavorful,
growing segment.
n
CountryGirl Cocktails—a partnership with Nash-
ville record label Average Joe’s Entertainment—
primarily targets women through product place-
ment at concerts, in music videos and contests.