Trends on the wine market in Poland
According to Nielsen data of August 2019, Poles spent PLN 185.4 billion on purchases of FMCG products in the last year, of which 20% was on alcohol (PLN 36 billion). During 12 months, Polish customers increased their spending on alcohol by 6.4 percent. Sales of wine by volume are growing faster than sales of vodka and beer.
In 2018, a statistical Pole drank about 4 liters of wine, and consumers spent a total of PLN 3.2 billion on wine. The wine market has grown 9% over the past year. Nielsen data analysis distinguish 5 categories of wine: table, sparkling, aromatised and fruit, vermouth and dessert wines. Of this group, sparkling wines sell best, with sales up by 20% and half a billion zlotys spent on them. Also the sales of aromatized wines increased by 32% with PLN 200 million spent on them. Table wine with sales increased by 5% (up to PLN 2.1 billion) is the category which loses share on the market.
The most important trends on the wine market in Poland (according to Nielsen's study):
- Wine in small bottles are becoming more and more popular. The share in volume sales of bottles with a capacity below 0.39 liters was 58% last year, while for bottles above 0.4 liters it was 9%. However, the share of small bottles in terms of value reached only 0.9%, while the value sales of bottles with a capacity above 0.4 liters was as much as 99.1%.
- Wines without alcohol. The non-alcoholic wine market has grown 10 times in the last 12 months. Nielsen's analysis shows that non-alcoholic sparkling wines have a 0.4% share in sales value of the wine market (an increase of 1178% compared to the previous year), and table wines 0.2%. (an increase of 741% compared to the previous year). Interest in non-alcoholic beverages is constantly growing in Poland.
- Dry wines. Poles choose dry wines more and more often. Sweet table wines lose in favor of aromatised wines. The sale of dry wines increased by 8% per year and semi-sweet and semi-dry by 4%.
- Wine priced over PLN 20 wins the market. Polish consumers are able to spend more money on wine. Among the wines from the segment above PLN 20 (for a 0.75L bottle) the wines from Chile, Portugal and Georgia are the most popular. Within 12 months (August 2018-August 2019), the sales of wines from the ultra premium segment (i.e. wines over PLN 70 per 0.75 liter bottle) were growing the fastest.
- The most popular wines from the USA and France. Poles like to drink wines imported from the United States and France. Wines from Austria, Georgia and New Zealand have the fastest sales increase. Sales of wines from Moldova and Hungary are also increasing, while sales of wines from Bulgaria are falling.
- There is growing interest in specific wine strains. Poles are increasingly interested in specific wine strains so the percentage of wines with a specific strain is systematically increasing. Over the past year, sales of Chardonnay table wines have grown by 13%, as did the Sauvignon Blanc. Also sales of Malbec wines increased by 28% and Zinfandel by 41%. The sales of Riesling wines increased the fastest - by 50%.
- Prosecco dominates over champagne. Sparkling wines are extremely popular in Poland and prosecco wines exceeded 1/3 of the share of sparkling wines. Prosecco wines has become the driving force of the sparkling wine market. Prosecco sales in Poland increased by 57% over the past year.
- Aromatised wines. Aromatized wine increased by 1/3. It is the most dynamically developing alcohol category in Poland, with still undiscovered potential in discount stores. The value of the fruit (non-grape) segment is estimated at PLN 20 million and the most popular flavors are: pomegranate, strawberry, peach and currant. Aromatised wines meet two needs of Polish customers: they are fruit wines and they are of Polish origin. However, there is no supply for such wines and Polish wines are very expensive, also in terms of production.
Source: portalspozywczy.pl