The large-scale retail trade is slowing down in volume, growing in value. E-commerce still positive

Wine sales in Italian large-scale organized distribution are slowing down in volume but will grow in value in 2021 compared to 2020. The trend, anticipated by WineNews on Iri data in recent days, is now confirmed by the Nomisma Wine Monitor report, produced in collaboration with NielsenIQ on the final 2021 figures. From which it emerges that “after the toil of 2020, wine sales in Italy in the off-trade channel (Hypermarkets, Super, Small free service areas, Discount, Cash&Carry and E-commerce of generalist sites) will close 2021 with a little breathlessness”, with a reduction in volume of -1.2% on the previous year, against, however, growth in values of +5%. Compared to 2019 - i.e. before the outbreak of the pandemic - the same figures show an increase of 5% in volume and over 13% in value, reflecting a premiumization of wine consumption that has been going on for several years, a note explains.
“This shift in purchases in large-scale distribution towards wines in higher price ranges occurs both within the same category and through a shift in consumption between different types and higher unit values”, emphasizes Denis Pantini, Nomisma Food and Wine Monitor Manager. Suffice it to say, in fact, that volume sales of sparkling wines and Champagne are growing in double figures (+23%) while still wines closed 2021 with a drop of 4.5% in volume but +0.3% in value. “The qualitative repositioning of still wine consumption can be deduced above all from value sales in hyper and supermarkets where PDO wines are growing - +5% in value - against a drop in generic wines (-10%)”, adds Pantini.
Shifting the analysis to the various distribution formats, Hyper+Super+Smaller self-service outlets (which account for 64% of the volumes in the entire off-trade channel) recorded a reduction in volume of almost 2%, but an increase in value of 5.2%. Bubbles are driving sales, with Classic Method sparkling wines recording the most significant dynamics, with a growth in value of +26%, followed by dry Charmats (+19%), Champagne (+16%) and sweet Charmats (+12%). In terms of still and semi-sparkling wines, sales in the same format fell in value terms for semi-sparkling wines (-4.3%), while sales of still wines rose (+1.8%). With regard to the other formats, there was a decrease in sales both in terms of value and volume for Discount (-2% and -4% respectively), while on the contrary, Cash & Carry recorded a growth of almost 20% in sales in terms of value and +15% in terms of volume, demonstrating the recovery in consumption that took place in bars and restaurants in 2021.
Finally, e-commerce. After the explosion of sales in 2020, also as a result of lockdowns and restrictions and closures in the Horeca sector, 2021 closed with a further increase in wine purchases by Italians on generalist sites (retail chains and Amazon): +22% in value and +19% in volume compared to the previous year. It should, however, be noted that the last quarter of 2021 saw a reduction in e-commerce sales - compared to the same period of the previous year - of 13% in volume, even if this reduction is mainly linked to the “boom” in online purchases that occurred in 2020 due to the closure of restaurants and the consequent “constraint” imposed on Italians to celebrate Christmas and New Year’s Eve at home.