Alcohol Sales Spiked During COVID-19 Pandemic

Data from analytics firm Nielsen shows a “widening swath of the U.S. population turned to hard seltzers and cheap beer for solace or refreshment, depending on the person and the situation,” Fox Business reported.

In-store sales of domestic premium light beers from March 7th to June 6th increased. It now rates more than 10 percent compared with the same time last year. Sales of hard seltzers more than quadrupled.

Forty-four percent of retail consumers were first-time buyers.

As for online sales, alcohol sales skyrocketed from a year earlier – up 234 percent.

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However, the trend in these purchases may shift as restaurants and bars begin to reopen.

“We expect the total dollar spending on alcohol will decline,” said Danny Brager, senior vice president of Nielsen's beverage alcohol practice.”

“Consumers are shifting the dollars they would have spent on alcohol in a restaurant, bar, or tasting room to alcoholic beverages they can buy at a lower mark-up from retailers, online merchants and even directly from the supplier in the instances where it is legalized to do so,” he added.

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