Don’t miss out on a major soft drinks opportunity this summer

Last year, soft drinks put an extra £347.4m through the tills of c-store operators¹ – more than the combined growth of beer, wine, spirits, confectionery, crisps, snacks and nuts. As the most bought on-the-go item in convenience stores, soft drinks featured in an impressive 48% of all on-the-go occasions in 2022, up from 44% in 2021². It’s a category that is only continuing to grow in relevance and opportunity, so this summer is the ideal time to make sure your range is quenching the thirst of your shoppers and meeting changing demands.

Ben Parker, GB retail commercial director at Britvic, comments, “The growth we’re seeing in food-to-go missions across the convenience channel presents retailers with an opportunity to attract trade by offering a compelling range of soft drinks that meets consumer needs and occasions. Recent research shows there is a growing demand for soft drinks consumed on-the-go³, and we calculate that this occasion presents a chance to increase soft drinks sales value in the convenience retail channel by £400m a year by 2025⁴. That equates to a sales boost of £8,400 per year for each c-store⁵ operating in the UK today⁶. We’re committed to supporting our customers in making the most of this opportunity, whether that be through the advice we share, merchandising recommendations or the mix of bestselling brands we can offer across various soft drink segments.”

Your £8,400 opportunity: key sales drivers

Britvic’s 2023 soft drinks review identified five key drivers⁷ for retailers to bear in mind in order to tap into the £8,400 per store sales opportunity within soft drinks:

1. Recruiting Generation Z Size of prize: +£72m or £1,504/store
2. Winning with food Size of prize: +£80m or £1,672/store
3. Maximising health Size of prize: +£52m or £1,086/store
4. Simplifying shopping experiences Size of prize: +£96m or £2,006/store
5. Evolving energy Size of prize: +£100m or £2,089/store

Juice drinks are a great option for on-the-go occasions, and the category is growing by 14.6% YOY⁸.

Parker continues: “It’s important to remember that half of impulse shoppers are unsure which flavour or brand to choose when entering the store⁹, so there is ample opportunity to entice them to purchase a soft drink. Retailers should consider linking up key products like juice drinks with food to create compelling snack or meal deals. Brand partnerships or promotions can also help retailers to increase soft drink sales by driving visibility and excitement in store.”

Since launching in June 2021, Robinsons Ready to Drink is the fastest-growing juice drink in the category – now worth £16.5m retail sales value, +125% growth moving annual total¹⁰ – and perfectly placed to tap into the growing consumer demand for on-the-go drinks.

See Robinson’s selection of juice drinks in the gallery below

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Robinsons Ready to Drink Raspberry & Apple

Robinsons Ready to Drink Peach & Mango

Robinsons Ready to Drink Blackberry & Blueberry

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Robinsons x The Hundred

Robinsons Ready to Drink has teamed up with The Hundred cricket competition once again for an on-pack promotion to drive summer sales, giving away 112 pairs of tickets as part of its three-year partnership, as well as £20 via bank transfer to spend on food and drink on the day. The Hundred cricket competition partnership furthers Britvic’s focus on Healthier People as it continues to encourage consumers to make healthier choices and live healthier lives. After a very successful competition last year, which saw more than 500,000 tickets sold, and reached over 16 million people via broadcast, this year’s event is taking place from 1^st to 27^th August.

Robinsons Ready to Drink will be supporting The Hundred partnership through disruptive point-of-sale, digital and in-store activations. It will also include in-ground advertising – alongside other branded partners – during the tournament. The on-pack promotion and in-store activations will support retailers in driving sales this summer, particularly in and around sporting events.

^{*GB only. Promotional period: 00:01 12.06.2023 until 23:59 23.07.2023. First come first served. NPN. Visit the At Your Convenience website to claim your free competition POS kit and Free Case of 500ml PET. 500 POS kits available, max 1 per outlet. Once set up, submit a photo to yourpos@britvic.com of your POS kit set up to enter the competition to win one of 4 x 4 tickets to a ‘The Hundred’ game (either Edgbaston 5th Aug (2 x 4 tickets) or Lords 8th Aug (2 x 4 tickets). 4 prizes in total. Draw date: 27.07.2023. Registration & a valid email address are required. Travel, food and accommodation not included. Visit atyourconvenience.com for full terms and details. Promoter: Britvic Soft Drinks.}

^{Sources
1 IRI, Total Convenience, Total Soft Drinks, Value growth YoY, 52 w/e 01.01.23
2+3 Lumina Intelligence Convenience Tracking Programme, 52 w/e 09.01.22 and 52 w/e 08.01.23
4 Britvic IC Category Vision January 2023. Impulse size of prize based on Nielsen MAT 2022 Impulse share of soft drinks (40%) multiplied by Britvic market opportunity. Impulse size of prize per store calculated by dividing by Lumina 2022 estimated number of impulse outlets 47,861
5 Britvic defines convenience stores as all independent, symbol group, CNT, petrol forecourt, travel retail and multiple grocer-owned c-stores in the UK
6 ACS - The 2022 Local Shop Report, September 2022, https://www.acs.org.uk/research/local-shop-report
7 Britvic IC Category Vision January 2023. Impulse size of prize based on NielsenIQ RMS, MAT 2022, Impulse share of soft drinks (40%) multiplied by market opportunity. Impulse size of prize per store calculated by dividing by Lumina 2022 estimated number of impulse outlets 47,861
8 NielsenIQ RMS, Total Coverage, Single Serve Drinks, Britvic Defined, Value Sales 52 w/e 22.04.23
9 Shoppercentric Britvic Bespoke Immediate Consumption Research December 2021
10 NielsenIQ RMS, Total Coverage, Single Serve Drinks, Britvic Defined, Value Sales 52 w/e 22.04.23}