Soft drinks sales remain steady despite recession

UK sales totalled £8.4bn across all channels during the year, down just 1% in value and 2% in volume terms compared to the previous year's strong performance. This performance comes as consumers turn towards brands they know and trust as economic conditions deteriorate. The 2009 Britvic Soft Drinks Report also found that in 2008 energy and sports drinks continued to drive the market as consumers sought specific functional benefits such as added vitamins, electrolytes, glucose or stimulants (including caffeine and guarana) while traditional favourites such as cola, squash and juice drinks proved to be resilient. Additionally the big soft drinks brands held up well as consumers opted for well-known and trusted names rather than switching to own-label products. Other highlights of the report were; Robinsons had a successful year, with sales up 6%, and increased its leadership of the squash sub-category, while energy and sports drinks saw the fastest growth, traditionally popular drinks such as cola, squash and juice drinks also performed well, and Britvic outperformed the market with 8% growth in value during the year, compared to the market's 1% rise. This was driven by strong performances from Pepsi, Robinsons and the newly-launched sports drink Gatorade. Commenting on the 2009 Soft Drinks Report, Paul Moody, Britvic chief executive and president of the British Soft Drinks Association said: "Soft drinks continue to be a staple purchase on which consumers are reluctant to compromise. And as a soft drink is a small-ticket, cash item offering affordable everyday enjoyment, they have little reason to. In the downturn so far, it's the big brands and traditionally popular sub-categories like cola, squash and juice drinks that consumers seem particularly unwilling to do without." "With another tough year in prospect, the challenge for the industry is to keep delivering the combination of value and quality that consumers expect, and to stay alert to every shift in their daily purchasing decisions."