Beers and lager report

But, this does not mean the retail trade will not be able to cash in on the tournament that runs just as independent retailers enter the most important period of the year, at least as far as beer and cider sales are concerned.

The Euro 2008 championships kick off on June 7 and BBC and ITV are covering 27 live matches, including the final on June 29, with kick-off times at 5pm and 7.45pm for the group games and at 7.45pm for the later knock-out games.

Impulse purchases of chilled beer and cider naturally rise when temperatures increase and independent retailers should hold an advantage over the major multiples at this time of the year.

Additionally, with England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland not represented at Euro 2008, then football fans are more likely to watch the tournament at home rather than down the pub with their mates.

Tom Maclennan, wholesale channel director at Coors Brewers, believes the off-trade may not be too badly hit by the lack of home representation at the three-week tournament. “We still believe fans will be glued to the extensive TV coverage,” he says.

Significant uplifts in sales, says Maclennan, have been seen in recent years when good weather coincides with the big matches. “Our message to retailers will be one of availability of cold beers at all times,” he says.

“During the last good summer of 2006, beer sales peaked in the middle of July when a heatwave landed over the weekend. Sales during this period exceeded those of the weekend before when England played Portugal in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.”

Making the most of hot weather, he says, requires retailers to be ready to take advantage with plentiful supplies of the big lager brands in stock.

“Independents stores see their greatest weekly sales during the summer months as they are more able to meet the impulse demand for cold beer,” says Maclennan. “The large retailers tend to rely on shoppers stocking up on the larger ambient pack deals. The challenge will be to have the contingency plans and a close eye on the forecast to make the most of these hot weekends, if and when they materialise.”

A key element this summer will be the pack formats that independent stock, according to Carol Saunders, head of off-trade customer marketing at Scottish & Newcastle UK (S&N UK). “Consumers,” she says,

“Look for added convenience, which can be satisfied through product functionality, portability and ease of use. Retailers can offer such products at a price premium, as consumers are generally willing to pay more for this added convenience.

“Groups of people gathering at a friend's home for a special occasion will be looking to purchase u convenient formats, such as four- and eight-packs,” says Saunders. “Retailers can also really capitalise on this by making sure they have a chilled offering.”

Saunders says it is also important retailers carefully choose the beer and cider brands and the pack formats they stock in-store. “It is better to stock a well thought-out range to make it easier for consumers to find what they are looking for and to give more space to the leading brands and categories that are in growth so as to drive further sales,” she says.

Saunders says retailers should not forget the “with food” opportunity, as this offers the opportunity to merchandise beer and cider with snacks and other foods. Other merchandising opportunities, she says, includes creating an “over ice bay” to highlight the new generation of “over ice ciders” – including Bulmers Original, Magners and Gaymers Original.

Other merchandising opportunities include the highlighting of beer brands from the competing countries. Michael Cook, director of imported beer at specialist beer company Pierhead Purchasing, says the major supermarkets have “devalued many mainstream brands” through discounting, but there is an opportunity for independent retailers to increase their sales of “authentic” imported beers that cannot be found in the leading supermarkets.

“By offering interesting beers from countries that will be featuring in the tournament, it gives retailers an excellent opportunity to educate consumers on a variety of new brands, styles and flavours. It is also a good opportunity for retailers to make a name for their shop as the place to go for authentic beers with real character,” he says.

The Pierhead portfolio includes a number of beers from competing countries, including Crocodile (Sweden), Marathon (Greece), Swiss Mountain (Switzerland) and Alhambra Reserva (Spain).

Nations with large ex-pat populations in the UK include Poland and Turkey and there are beers to meet their needs available in the wholesale trade, including Tyskie, Zywiec and Okocim (all from Poland) and Efes (from Turkey).

Some of the big European beer producers also have national teams at the championships, including Germany (Beck's and Holsten Pils), Holland (Heineken and Amstel), the Czech Republic (Budweiser Budvar and Staropramen), Italy (Peroni Nastro Azzurro) and France (Kronenbourg 1664).