Warning on ‘bleak’ outlook for gin industry

The once-thriving gin industry could face a bleak future with price-conscious drinkers turning away from the spirit, it has been warned.

Data company CGA revealed the market share in British pubs, bars and restaurants for gin has now fallen below vodka, liqueurs and speciality drinks, with 28% of customers claiming to drink less gin than they did last year.

“It really is a bleak moment for the industry,” said Pal Gleed, director general of The Gin Guild. “Some [distillers] are now operating on the very smallest of margins, while still trying their very best to absorb the rising costs for as long as possible.”

Before the Covid pandemic the craze for independent gins from small craft distillers was driven by supermarkets eager to stock a myriad of quirky spirits with shoppers happy to get on board and  expand their repertoires.

The boom was aided by the fact gin is less time-intensive to make than many other spirits and during lockdowns drinkers who turned to entertaining at home still enjoyed the best craft distillations.

Hospitality businesses putting £1.5bn of gin through the tills over the last year, according to CGA, with sales down £163.6m compared to 2019 when demand was at its peak.