Paul Hill finds out how Heineken UK is working with Bestway and the wider wholesale channel to grow the beer and cider category
Heineken UK has always been one of the leading suppliers of beer and cider to the wholesale channel, with what is a vast portfolio of bestselling brands that are designed to cater to all occasions.
As a key supplier, it continues to support the industry through investment in large in-depot activations and PoS materials, all designed to engage with retailers and their customers.
Lately, it has been working on a project that focuses on a ‘Meet the Chillers’ Halloween activation, which aims to help wholesalers sustain sales during peak trading periods by capturing the attention of retailers.
Customer director at Heineken, Adam Turner, recently visited Bestway’s Park Royal depot and spoke with the wholesaler’s group trading director Kenton Burchell to discuss the latest insights and developments within the beer and cider sector. “It’s great to have Heineken UK here in west London for this activation ahead of Halloween. Fantastic supplier partnerships such as this allow us to create brilliant campaigns and increase sales,” said Burchell.
“At Heineken UK, we are committed to investing in the wholesale channel, and this can be seen by brilliant activations like ‘Meet the Chillers’, explained Turner. “Increasing the sales of wholesalers and their retail partners is always the main goal of every campaign we develop.”
He continued: “It’s always great to meet wholesalers to help them identify emerging trends across shoppers and their consumption behaviours. For example, we know that when disposable income is tight due to cost of living, beer and cider offers great value in comparison to other categories for the big night in opportunity. Consumers still want to enjoy themselves during these times, which links into the category driver of making memories together, so it’s crucial that wholesalers maximise space for the category in depot.”
In addition to this, he described how beer and cider is perfectly positioned to take advantage of the premiumisation trend, with Heineken UK brands such as Birra Moretti and Inch’s Cider performing very well over the past 12 months, experiencing 10.3%1 and 50.6%2 value growth, respectively. Cruzcampo, since launching in August 2023 in the off trade, is also now worth £71m3.
Small and mid-sized beer and cider packs have also grown in importance, according to Turner: “Stocking brands in these formats is now even more vital during key trading periods to capitalise on the premiumisation trend. But wholesalers should also not forget mainstream core products, such as Foster’s and Strongbow, which are still two of the biggest sellers in impulse. These demonstrate how crucial it is for wholesalers to have mainstream lines available.”
“Campaigns like ‘Meet the Chillers’ offer our retail partners a great incentive to buy into the beer and cider category,” added Burchell. “In the very first week of this activation, we saw sales up 20%, while Cruzcampo and Strongbow Dark Fruit have been in our top five volume sellers over the previous six-week period.”
Heineken UK’s commitment to wholesalers underscores its dedication to fostering long-term partnerships and driving growth across the channel. Through a combination of activations like ‘Meet the Chillers’, education and continued support, the company is helping its wholesale partners thrive in a competitive landscape.
1value sales growth YTD we 12.10.24, 2value sales YTD we 12.10.24, 3+1,455% value sales growth (+£71M) 52 we 12.10.24, 4Nielsen IQ, total Off trade 52 we 15.06.24, 5NielsenIQ ScanTrack, total coverage 52 we 10.08.24, 6Nielsen Homescan survey March 2024, 7NielsenIQ ScanTrack
