CGA by NIQ’s On Premise User Survey (OPUS) builds a detailed picture of these venues and their guests’ habits and preferences, helping sales and marketing teams craft engaging promotional strategies. It shows how these informal venues are an integral part of the country’s urban cultural and economic life and are now visited by around one in seven (14%) South Africans. Visitors tend to be frequent, with more than half (54%) using them every week. Here are five of the latest OPUS insights to understand these users and meet their needs.
1 Deliver value
Visitors to informal taverns and shebeens tend to spend slightly less than guests in other channels. Their average spend per head is R175—R23 below the average. This makes it vital for brands to deliver good value for money. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean low cost—just an experience that is worth whatever price is paid.
2 Target earlier dayparts
OPUS highlights mid-afternoons as a major opportunity for sales. Nearly a third (31%) of informal tavern users visit between 2pm and 5pm—5 percentage points more than the average in all channels. This daypart can be an effective time to partner with owners on promotional activity.
3 Influence in venues
While more than half (54%) of informal tavern guests know which brands they will drink before arrival, over a third (36%) have chosen their category but not a brand—and 10% are completely open. There is space to influence decisions through in-venue advertising and touchpoints like menus and visibility on the bar or in fridges.
4 Earn operator recommendations
As CGA’s Global Bartender Report shows, recommendations from staff can also have a powerful effect on decision-making. Around a quarter (24%) say these are an important factor in their choice of drink when visiting an informal tavern or shebeen.
5 Help guests to experiment
Users of informal taverns and shebeens often have a versatile and experimental approach to drinking. Two thirds (67%) say they more likely to try new drinks brands in these places than in other On Premise venues. A similar number (68%) are more likely to pay extra for a better quality drink—a sign of the room for premiumisation despite the focus on value.
CGA by NIQ’s OPUS solution delivers many more insights into consumers’ engagement with informal taverns and all other On Premise channels.
Abhi Sehgal, CGA by NIQ’s client solutions manager EMEA, said: “Informal taverns may not have the penetration of some channels, but there is rich potential for brands to drive trial and loyalty here. Identifying exactly why and how users choose their drinks is the first step to success, and our OPUS service is here to help all suppliers achieve better penetration in a segment that is set for even more growth in 2025.”
Abhi Sehgal, CGA by NIQ’s client solutions manager EMEA, said:
Accessible via a package of core outputs and custom projects, and a proprietary self-serve platform, OPUS is the single source of understanding what consumers are doing in the On Premise and why. To learn more about CGA’s consumer research across South Africa, download more information here, or contact Abhi Sehgal here.
