Red Bull has grabbed a record share of the UK energy drinks market as it attracted new shoppers to the category and continued to benefit from demand for its take-home multipacks.
Revenues for the brand in the UK soared 19% to £414.7m in the 12 months to 31 December 2021, with an extra 106,000 serving units (SU) shifted compared with the previous year, a volume rise of 18.9% to 664.5 million SU.
It continued to see elevated demand in supermarkets as the off-trade channel registered 15.3% growth in 2021 as lockdowns continued and hospitality venues remained shut for parts of the year.
A shift to multipacks and larger formats continued to be a key driver of the strong performance in retail, with volumes up 23% year on year, adding an extra 22 million SU.
Multipacks made up 21% of the portfolio mix by the end of year, up from just 14% in 2019, with Red Bull claiming to be shifting a four-pack every 2.5 seconds.
It helped Red Bull achieve record market share of 32.1% in the off-trade while outgrowing the category in volume and value terms, and cementing it’s position as the UK’s number-one sports and energy drinks brand.
It also added a further 50,000 new distribution points during the year.
Red Bull moved up two places in the Grocer’s Britain’s Biggest Brands rankings for 2022 to 11 thanks to an £81m gain in value to £500.9m [NielsenIQ 52 w/e 1 January 2022], which was the second largest jump in the report, with only rival Monster outpacing it.
However, the picture was more mixed for the on-trade channel as pubs, bars, restaurants, cafes and hotels all remained closed during numerous lockdowns.
Volumes remained 39% behind 2019 levels in the first half of 2021 before bouncing back in the latter part of the year as hospitality reopened to 23% ahead of pre-pandemic numbers. The channel finished the year just 6% down on 2019 figures.
The brand also achieved a record share of the on-trade in the year of 77.2% thanks to new deals signed with major on-trade customers and distribution growth in fast food chains and catering.
Pre-tax profits at Red Bull UK increased 13% to £33.6m, although margins were squeezed a little.
Launched in the UK market in 1993, six years after the first can of Red Bull was sold in Austria in 1987, the brand helped create the energy drinks category.
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