Non-alcoholic beverage sales decelerated over the Thanksgiving holiday, according to the latest analysis of NielsenIQ data by Goldman Sachs Equity Research covering the two-week period ending December 2.
- Total retail dollar sales rose 2.8% in the period, down from 4.5% in the-four week period and 8.8% for the 52-week period.
- Volume sales were down -0.7% in the period, versus +0.4% in the four-weeks.
- Average pricing rose by 3.5% year-over-year, compared to +4% in the four-weeks.
CSDs
Carbonated soft drink dollar sales were up 2.7%, decelerating from +4.3% in the four-week period. Volume sales declined -2.2%, worsening from a -1.4% drop in the four-week period. Meanwhile, average pricing was up 5.1%, down from +5.7% in the four-weeks.
The Coca-Cola Company reported dollar sales up 3.3% in the two-weeks, as volumes fell -0.3% and pricing rose 3.6%. PepsiCo sales fell -0.6% against -5.1% volume and +4.7% pricing. Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) was up 3.3%, with a volume slide of -1.1% and pricing up 4.4%.
Publicly traded brand Zevia fell -9.8% against a -22.7% volume decline. Prebiotic soda maker Poppi rose 195.1% to over $120 million in sales with volume growth of 187.3%.
Energy Drinks
Energy sales rose 7.3% in the two-weeks, slowing from +8.9% in the four-week period. Volume sales were up 7.8% and average pricing dropped by -0.5%.
Category leader Monster (now including sales metrics for Bang as well) was down -3.1%, with declines worsening from -1.4% in the four-week period. Volume sales for the company were down -4.5% while average pricing was up just 1.5%.
Red Bull reported dollar sales up 2.5% against volume declines of -2.1% and +4.7% average pricing. Celsius continued to climb triple-digits, up 114.2% to over $1.6 billion and volume improvements of 68.8%. PepsiCo (Rockstar and MTN Dew) was down -4.8%, with steep volume declines of -11.4%. 5-Hour Energy sales fell -6.7% with volume down -6.5%.
Several emerging performance energy brands reported double-digit growth, including C4/Nutrabolt (+60.1%), Alani Nu (+54.6%) and Ghost (+52.3%). However, A Shoc reported sales down -44.7%.
Bottled Water
Water sales were up just 0.5% in the two-week period, slowed from +2.3% in the four-weeks. Volume sales were up 0.9% while average pricing dropped -0.4%.
Private label sales remained the largest share of the category, growing sales by 4.3% and volume by 3.3%. BlueTriton Brands was up 0.6% with a +1.1% kick to volume and a -0.5% pricing slide.
Coke (-0.9%) and PepsiCo (-6.7%) both reported negative sales growth in the two-weeks, as did Fiji (-5.5%), CG Roxane (-1.7%), KDP (-4.4%), Niagara Bottling (-1.2%) and flavored water maker Hint (-6.3%). Nestle Holdings, meanwhile, improved sales by 1.2%, Danone North America was up 10.7% and Liquid Death’s still water offerings rose 13.7%.
Sports Drinks
Sports and hydration drinks took a hit in the two-weeks, falling -2.1%, compared to +1.4% growth for the four-week period. Volumes were down a stark -11.5% while +10.6% average pricing helped to offset the decline.
Gatorade (PepsiCo) reported sales down -5.1% with volumes down -14% and pricing up 10.3%. Coke’s combined portfolio of BodyArmor and Powerade fell -11.8% with volumes dropping -15.5% and pricing up by 4.4%. Meanwhile, PRIME jumped up 128.8% to over $641.2 million with volume increasing by 97.2% and pricing up 16%. Electrolit was up 20.8% with volume growth of 23.6% and pricing down -2.2%.
Sparkling Water
Sparkling water grew 5.2%, bucking the trend and accelerating slightly from 5% growth in the four-week period. Volume sales were down -0.8% (and improvement from -1.3% in the four-weeks) and average pricing increased by 6%.
Talking Rain reported sales up a modest 0.5% while LaCroix-maker National Beverage Corp reported sales down -1.2%. Nestle Holdings (+0.8%), PepsiCo’s Bubly (+1%) and Coke’s AHA (+1.2%) posted modest dollar sales growth while Spindrift (+22.7%), Waterloo (+55.1%) and Liquid Death (+54.3%) were all up double-digits.
Sales data for Polar, which is distributed by KDP, was not included.
Coffee
Ready-to-drink coffee sales fell -1.6%, weakening from -1% in the four-weeks. Volumes were down -2.3% and average pricing rose just 0.7%.
Starbucks sales were flat in the two-weeks, slowing from +0.7% in the four-week period. Danone, which makes STOK, grew sales by 10.6% and Black Rifle Coffee Company shot up 21.8%. However Coke’s portfolio fell -27.9%, Califia Farms declined -19.3% and Kitu Life Super Coffee dove -36.8%.
Coconut Water
Coconut water reported the strongest category-level growth at +10.6% in the two-weeks, decelerating mildly from 11.8% growth in the four-weeks. Volume sales improved by 11.2% and average pricing dropped -0.5%.
Category leader Vita Coco reported dollar sales in line with the category at +10.8%, alongside +9.3% volume sales and +1.3% average pricing. Harmless Harvest was up 10.9% with volumes likewise up +9.3%. Goya (+7.8%), C2O (+17.9%) and Sun Hing Foods (+16.3%) also reported positive sales growth.