White Claw’s vodka extension is another sign of hard seltzer’s demise

Hard seltzer in the UK is doomed. That’s one way to view news that the category’s leading light, White Claw, is extending into spirits. 

The brand will debut a quartet of White Claw Vodka lines on these shores next month, having introduced them to the US last year. 

Granted, it was probably just a matter of time before the innovation came to the UK. But seltzer’s failure to strike a chord with UK shoppers will only have accelerated that process.

White Claw is ticking along nicely in hard seltzer – its sales are up 31.1%  on volumes up 44.7% [NIQ, 52 w/e 20 April 2024]  – but that’s still from a relatively low base. It’s now worth £9.6m and, tellingly, that figure represents over 80% of total category value in the UK. 

Indeed, the wider category has gone soft. Sales have fallen by 13.4% to £11.8m on volumes down 13.5% [NIQ], while sparkling alcoholic waters from BrewDog, Asahi and Topo Chico have quietly disappeared from supermarket shelves.

Meanwhile, brands like Badwater, Drty and – most recently – Arrowtown have sought to reposition themselves as RTD cocktails, eyeing the more sizeable opportunity offered by a category that has delivered growth of 3.9% to £589.2m [NIQ].

“We’ve moved away from hard seltzer positioning because the term doesn’t often resonate with enough UK consumers,” explains Arrowtown’s co-founder Rob Smith. “Many aren’t familiar with it, and it creates confusion about the product’s alcohol base with it not being spirit-led.”

It’s a view shared by Richard Ingram, global director at White Claw owner Mark Anthony Brands International (MABI). “Talking about hard seltzers in the UK is a bit of a non-starter because there is no point of reference here,” he told The Grocer last month.

MABI believes there is still a “huge” opportunity to grow White Claw in the UK, but it now looks to be channelling that ambition into spirits. And vodka is the obvious spirit to pick for White Claw, which has made a selling point of its low-calorie and low-sugar credentials.

The vodka category is far from vibrant, with sales up just 0.9% to £1.5bn on volumes down 4.7% [NIQ, 52 we 10 August 2024]. But given its scale, even moderate success would see White Claw easily overtake its accomplishments in seltzer. And White Claw is keen to push its “triple wave” filtration process, which it claims gives its flavoured spirits half the sugar content of competitors.

“We are so excited to introduce White Claw Vodka to the UK market and give consumers a new, fresh option in the vodka space to bring new flavour to your social occasions,” says UK marketing director Michael Dean.

The move also opens the pathway for White Claw to launch RTD cocktail innovation of its own. The seeds for this have already been sown in the release, which encourages drinkers to mix White Claw Vodka with its hard seltzers to create ‘Super Claw’ serves. The brand also registered trademarks covering prepared alcoholic cocktails last month.

If this happens, then hard seltzer – a one-brand category with sales teetering towards the £10m mark – will be consigned to the scrapheap.