A surge in demand for Guinness has led Diageo to limit supply to retailers in the hopes of avoiding a Christmas shortage of the stout.
First revealed by The Morning Advertiser, fears Guinness supplies to pubs and bars could be disrupted have grown after Diageo warned of “exceptional consumer demand” over the past month.
As widely reported elsewhere, the supplier has put allocation limits for Guinness in place across the on-trade. However, there are also limits in place for off-trade retailers, including grocery multiples, The Grocer understands.
These limits, which have been communicated to retailers, are designed to prevent panic buying and ensure Guinness Draught remains widely available over the festive period. The beer remained in stock across all the traditional ‘big four’ grocery multiples as The Grocer went to press [Assosia].
There are no limits on supply of other Guinness products, including Guinness 0.0 at present, The Grocer understands.
A Diageo spokesperson said: “Over the past month we have seen exceptional consumer demand for Guinness in Great Britain.
“We have maximised supply and we are working proactively with our customers to manage the distribution to trade as efficiently as possible.”
Read more: Guinness is a bright spot in Diageo’s otherwise tough year
Driven by the rise of so-called “Guinnfluencers” on social media and endorsements from everyone from Kim Kardashian to Keir Starmer, Guinness has enjoyed a remarkable resurgence in popularity in recent years.
The Dublin-brewed stout saw sales climb by 30% in the Great Britain over the past year, Diageo revealed in its full-year results in July.
And as The Grocer’s Top Products Report 2024 will later this month show, Guinness is close to breaking lager’s monopoly of the top 10 beer brands in retail, according to NIQ data.
In order to meet rising demand, Diageo is currently building a new €200m (£160m) carbon neutral brewery in Kildare. It has also pumped €30m into its St James’s Gate brewery to increase output of Guinness 0.0, which is the number one alcohol-free beer in the off-trade [NIQ 52 w/e 7 September].
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