When tourists visit Dublin, there is usually one destination that many will fight tooth and nail to visit. While Christ Church Cathedral offers a historic and architectural experience and the National Leprechaun Museum a glimpse into the folklore of the Emerald Isle, neither can quite compare to the huge Guinness Storehouse towering over the city.
Here, visitors can enjoy a tour of the birthplace of Ireland’s signature drink, sample different flavours and textures of the stout and enjoy views over Dublin while enjoying a pint in the bar located at the top of the tower.
Guinness, then, has become synonymous with Ireland – but consumers do not need to be in the country to enjoy a nice refreshing glass. Today, Guinness is sold all over the world, with the UK being one of the largest markets. The beverage is hugely popular in Britain and remains a firm favourite in pubs nationwide.
Unfortunately, Guinness does not seem to have been experiencing the same popularity in off licenses and supermarkets in recent months, with the company recording a 15.8 per cent drop in UK sales.
Nilsen, the research firm dealing with UK sales of the Irish favourite, says that sales of Guinness Draught have dropped by 15.8 per cent in the past year, while sales of the Guinness Original brand dropped by 5 per cent over the same period.
According to the company, the drop in sales is due to the introduction of the larger eight and ten packs of cans, which offer a greater value for money as each can works out cheaper in the long run. As consumers are extremely focused on value for money in today’s economy, the bigger packs are outselling the traditional four packs thus leading to the sales slump.
A spokesman said; “We have always offered Guinness in four packs but we have now introduced the eight and ten packs as we have seen a move in the market to mid-size packs.
“These allow shoppers to enjoy the drinks they love at more affordable prices, offering them value for money, with the new smaller pack sizes.”
The company now intends to invest heavily in the worldwide marketing of Guinness, despite the fact that international sales have grown by 4 per cent this year – something of a success given that much of the world remains bound by financial uncertainty. The £33 million marketing injection will largely revolve around the eight pack size, which has only just been introduced to the retail industry.
However, food and drink specialist magazine The Grocer believes that the dropping sales of Guinness are not so much due to a greater variety in pack sizes than in the heavy competition now cropping up in supermarket own brands. According to industry experts at The Grocer, more Guinness drinkers are attempting to save money by switching to own label stouts, such as Tesco’s Simply Stout which retails at £1.33 per 500 millilitre bottle as compared to £1.89 for a Guinness Original of the same size.
Furthermore, The Grocer points out heavy stouts are waning in popularity, with consumers preferring to drink beverages that are a little lighter. This means that Guinness is losing out to lagers and paler ales, which also tend to be slightly cheaper in price per pint.
An industry expert says; “It is a fantastic brand but it goes against the grain compared with a lot of the new product development we are seeing at the moment.
“Most of this is angled towards easier drinking products.”
It appears, then, that the long-time Irish favourite is facing some stiff competition to remain as iconic and popular as it once was. Perhaps once the economy begins to pick up in earnest and drinkers return to their preferences, Guinness will return to the position it has become accustomed to. Yet should consumers remain wary of splashing out on luxury brands and heavier beers, there may be dark days ahead for Guinness in the future.
Did you previously drink Guinness but have switched to a cheaper brand, or do you believe that staying loyal to the iconic stout rewards you in terms of taste and quality? Do you believe that it would be possible for such a well-known brand to fall into economic difficulty as a result of cheaper supermarket competition?
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