CGA’s latest On Premise Measurement Solution (OPMS) data to end 2023 reveals notable trends in Britain’s On Premise rum market, indicating a shift in consumer preferences. Dark rum, in particular, is witnessing a significant surge in popularity. Its market share has increased from 16.4% to 17.6%, marking a growth of 1.2 percentage points (pp) since last year. Moreover, the category’s value has also seen substantial growth, now standing at £190.6 million, reflecting a 5% increase compared to the previous year.
On the flip side of the chromatic spectrum, white rum is also experiencing a favourable trend. While it hasn’t grown as much as dark rum – only by 0.5pp – its volume share remains robust, consisting of a substantial 22.8% of all rum in the GB On Premise market.
Conversely, the golden rum category is slightly losing to both dark and white rum, however, it still dominates the market with nearly 60% of the total rum market share by volume.
Mainstream outlets continue to dominate the market for the performance of rum with a current volume share of 67.3%. This figure has seen a modest increase of 0.5% over the past year, highlighting the popularity of rum in these channels.
Furthermore, we observe a trend towards premiumisation as Premium Rum has experienced a slight uplift, gaining 1.5% of volume share at the expense of Standard Rum. This shift reflects the growing consumer interest in exploring various rum variants beyond the traditional golden type, favouring the unique flavours of dark rum.
However, within premium outlets, Rum saw a better performance in terms of RoS (Rate of Sale), especially in Pubs and Hotels.
Indeed, upon closer examination of the rum market share across different premium outlet types, it becomes apparent that certain venues have been witnessing positive trends. Pubs and hotels experiencing outstanding gains in RoS, while the rest of the premium outlets seem to be experiencing significant losses.
There has been a notable shift in volume share by 1.5pp in premium pubs, which have consistently been the primary premium outlet for rum, now comprising nearly 47% of total volumes in this channel. Such a figure indicates the ongoing significance of these venues for the category’s future. Our data shows a similar positive trend when it comes to hotels, the third-largest premium outlet type. Hotels now represent 12.6% of volumes following a year-on-year growth of 1.1pp.
Indeed, the rum category presents numerous opportunities in the coming months. However, to capitalise on these opportunities, brands, suppliers, and operators alike must make decisions based on the most accurate and up-to-date data available. This will enable them to adapt strategies effectively and stay ahead in a dynamic On Premise rum market landscape.
CGA by NIQ’s On Premise Measurement solution (OPMS) provides suppliers and operators with deep insights into trends and opportunities across the whisky category in the On Premise sector across Great Britain. CGA’s expert team can also provide bespoke analysis to pinpoint opportunities for individual brands and sub-categories. To learn more about CGA’s capabilities across the On Premise industry, visit www.cgastrategy.com and get in touch with Violetta Njunina here.
