The head of Diageo has warned that consumers are facing an “extraordinary environment”, as one of the world’s biggest drinks makers reported its first global drop in sales since 2020. (The Financial Times £).

Global sales at the drinks multinational Diageo have declined for the first time since the Covid pandemic, although Great Britain bucked the trend thanks to a rise in the popularity of Guinness and related drinks. (The Guardian)

Diageo has warned that its margins are set to remain under “negative pressure” as it reported a drop in sales after a “challenging year” for the owner of Guinness, Baileys and Smirnoff vodka. (The Times £)

Diageo shares plummeted after the drinks giant struggled to rebuild investor confidence in the wake of a ‘challenging year’. (The Daily Mail)

Women are drinking more Guinness than ever before as the surge in its popularity shows no sign of abating. (The Daily Mail)

“Diageo’s lack of clarity is hard to swallow” – “Crew has a wider problem than a cyclical downturn. Some investors are still sore from a shock profit warning in November, caused by high stock levels and weak consumer demand in Latin America — something Diageo should have been alive to much earlier”. (The Financial Times £)

Alistair Osborne in The Times writes: “Crew could not have taken the top job in trickier circumstances. The former chief operating officer already faced the task of living up to the value-creation exploits of her predecessor Sir Ivan Menezes. But his untimely death on the eve of his retirement made for a sad and stressful handover, exacerbated by November’s shock profits warning.” (The Financial Times £)

Sky’s Ian King writes: “The bigger concern, though, is North America where, again, consumers have reverted to more normal behaviour after splurging on premium spirits for a couple of years after the end of lockdowns. As inflation has eaten into disposable incomes, North American consumers have also been trading down to cheaper brands.” (Sky News)

Nils Pratley writes: “it would be wrong to say Diageo’s woes are unique because the entire global spirits industry is having a weak run. But the company’s reputation for reliability and steadiness has disappeared faster than a shot of Don Julio.” (The Guardian)

Greggs is planning to keep more of its stores open into the evening as people picking up snacks such as steak bakes and vegan sausage rolls after work have driven its sales for the first six months of the year. (The Financial Times £)

Greggs has said it plans to open dozens of new stores in the UK this year after reporting a jump in profits. (Sky News)

Greggs sales surged 13.8% in the first half, as a successful over-ice drinks range and dedicated pizza deals boosted the bakery chain’s growth. (The Daily Mail)

Greggs has increased prices for some of its baked goods and sandwich ranges to offset higher wage bills and to protect profit margins (The Times £). Greggs has increased the amount it charges for some of its items, including an extra 5p on sausage rolls and their vegan equivalent, despite the bakery chain having said earlier this year it had no plans to increase prices (The Guardian). Greggs has raised the price of its sausage rolls and cheese sandwiches in a bid to offset its soaring wage bill (The Daily Mail).

McDonald’s sales have fallen worldwide for the first time in nearly four years amid rising prices and ongoing boycotts over the war in Gaza. (Sky News)

Starbucks has suffered a second straight quarterly drop in sales, underlining the pressures on a leadership team already contending with an activist shareholder and scrutiny from its charismatic former boss. (The Financial Times £)

The FT investigates why investors fell out of love with Ocado. During the pandemic it was seen as a British tech success story. But its progress since has been less convincing. “Consumers have drifted back to shopping in stores and the hoped-for rush of new customers for its world-leading but expensive engineering has been slow to materialise.” (The Financial Times £)

Starbucks Corporation posted a decline in sales for the second consecutive quarter as demand for its products fell in America and China. (The Times £)

UK consumers have cut back on summer spending amid the impact of poor weather and the cost of living crisis, figures show, underscoring the challenge for the Bank of England ahead of its interest rate decision on Thursday. (The Guardian)

“Brand loyalty ain’t what it used to be”. Weary consumers, particularly at the lower end of the financial spectrum, are looking for ways to cut back spending on everything from fast food to household appliances. More than three-quarter of Americans surveyed by McKinsey reported delaying purchases or trading down in some way. (The Financial Times £)

 

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