Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/629061
Key Indicators R etailers, restaurants and wineries all saw sales increase in 2015, swelling the size of the market for U.S. wine to more than $38 billion. Year-end data confirmed the strength of trends toward higher price seg- ments and thriving sparkling wine sales. Off-premise sales grew by 7% through De- cember according to IRI; direct-to-consumer shipments rose by 8%, according to the Wines Vines Analytics/ShipCompliant Model, and the on-premise channel showed improvement, too. A further sign of the health in the U.S. wine industry was that winery hiring activity in- creased by 19% in 2015. The big picture for domestic wine sales and other alcoholic beverages is now being calcu- lated by the firm BW166. Its managing partner, Jon Moramarco, said that consumer expendi- tures for U.S. wine in all channels including on-premise and off-premise (of which direct- to-consumer is a component) grew by 3% in 2015, or $1.3 billion. Wines & Vines has part- nered with BW166 to present its data on a regular basis in the print magazine and at winesandvines.com/metrics. BW166 reported that the value of on-prem- ise domestic wine sales rose by 9% to $12.9 billion, while the off-premise value rose just 1% to $25.2 billion. The split by channel was 34% on-premise and 66% off-premise. "I am seeing a couple of things going on in the wine market," Moramarco said. "Imported bulk is slipping, which is an indicator that low- end brands like Franzia bag in box are slipping. This has a bigger hit to volume than value." Imported bulk wines bottled in the United States are included in the domestic data here, and also by IRI in its off-premise data. "The strong dollar looks like it is starting to help imports, as volume is growing faster than value for imports," he continued. Consumer spending on imports in 2015 grew by 4%, out- 2015 Year-End Analysis Complete data is available at winesandvines.com/metrics METRICS 10 WINES&VINES February 2016 Winery Job Index MONTH December 2015 139 December 2014 155 12 MONTHS December 2015 272 December 2014 229 MONTHLY INDEX -10% 19% Off-Premise Sales MONTH December 2015 $837M December 2014 $782M 12 MONTHS December 2015 $8,414M December 2014 $7,877M MONTHLY SALES U.S. Wine Sales MONTH December 2015 $3,711M December 2014 $3,701M 12 MONTHS December 2015 $38,143M December 2014 $36,879M MONTHLY SALES 7% 0% 7% 3% Direct-to-Consumer Shipments MONTH December 2015 $177M December 2014 $166M 12 MONTHS December 2015 $1,967M December 2014 $1,820M MONTHLY SHIPMENTS 8% 7% New Analyst Firm Counts $38 Billion in U.S. Wine Sales Source: , Wines Vines Analytics. Domestic table and sparkling wine sales in multiple-outlet and convenience stores, four weeks ending Dec. 27, 2015. Source: bw166.com, Wines Vines Analytics. Domestic table and sparkling wine sales on and off premise. $ Billions $4 $3.5 $3 $2.5 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2014 2015 Source: winejobs.com winejobs.com Index 500 400 300 200 100 0 2015 2014 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Source: Wines Vines Analytics/ShipCompliant $ Millions $350 $300 $250 $200 $150 $100 $50 0 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2015 2014 $ Millions $1,000 $800 $600 $400 Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2014 2015