Growth is slowing down for spirits-based RTDs, but gains in the on-premise and emerging flavor categories hint at opportunities, according to bev-alc consulting and data firm 3 Tier Beverages.
Spirits-RTD growth peaked in 2020, with dollar sales growth of more than 150% in NIQ-tracked off-premise channels (total U.S. xAOC plus liquor plus convenience), 3 Tier Beverages consultant Erin McVickers shared in a webinar last month. Growth then progressively slowed, but the segment was still able to more than double sales from 2021 (nearly $1.53 billion) to 2024 (nearly $3.19 billion).
That trajectory differs from other forms of RTDs. Malt seltzers peaked in 2019, with rapid decline over the following two years, while FMBs cycling up and down with new styles (hard tea or lemonade, for instance). Wine RTDs initially peaked in 2020, with a recent resurgence in growth over the past two years.
Slow growth from spirits RTDs comes in spite of continued increases in the number of products on the market. In 2021, the segment had 1,950 UPCs selling in NIQ-tracked channels. That number grew to 2,374 in 2022, 2,743 in 2023 and 3,003 in 2024, McVickers reported. In the L52W, that number has increased slightly, to 3,098.
RTDs still have a small on-premise presence, with 2.5% share of total bev-alc dollar sales in the channel for the 52-week period ending May 17, McVickers shared, citing data from NIQ’s on-premise arm, CGA.
However, within the segment, spirits-based offerings – including RTD cocktails (44.2%) and ready-to-serve cocktails (5.3%) account for nearly half of all dollar sales (49.6%) in the L52W. That marks a 11.2 point gain compared to the same period in 2024.
The majority of that share was taken from hard seltzer (-9.5 points, to 37.8% share), followed by FMBs (-1.7 points, to 12.7%).
In the off-premise, FMBs and hard seltzer still have a dominant share of what NIQ refers to as the “progressive adult beverage” (PAB) category, which also includes wine- and spirits-based cocktails and hard cider. However, spirits- and wine-based RTDs are the only segments in the black in the L52W through August 9; spirits-based dollar sales +14.4%, volume +15.4%; wine-based dollar sales +7.5%, volume +5.1%.
Who Is The Spirits-Based RTD Consumer?
The customer profile buying spirits-RTDs is typically high income, caucasian and sits in a broad age range (35-64), according to data from Spectra Data, presented by 3 Tier in a second webinar this month.
“They like live performances, whether it’s rock or theater or what have you. They attend youth sports. They attend wine tastings,” McVicker said.
Spirits RTD customers also tend to shop at higher-end stores such as Whole Foods, as well as Trader Joe’s and Costco.
New Flavors Bubbling Up
Teas and lemonades are “obviously having a moment,” McVicker reported. The flavors rank highest in dollar volume following lime-flavored RTDs and fall in the top ten of flavors with the highest growth rate, holding close to three-fourth of the top growth flavors.
Peach, pineapple, watermelon, cranberry and strawberry, follow as the top spirits RTD flavors.
Other flavors picking up steam include cherry limeade, whiskey sour, mint lemon, cherry lemonade, spicy mango, raspberry lemonade, tea raspberry and cookie.