Off-Premise Alcohol Sales Fell 3.3% in Late August, NIQ Says

Retail sales of alcoholic beverages remained weak in the weeks leading into the end of August, with the latest NIQ weekly scans showing little change in the broader slowdown in off-premise channels. According to the market research firm’s most recent report, total dollar sales for beverage alcohol in NIQ-tracked retail outlets fell 3.3% from a year earlier in the four-week period ending August 22, to $8.4 billion.

Volume fell even more sharply. NIQ said beverage alcohol volume declined 5.2% year over year in the same four-week period, to 165.7 million cases. Brewbound, which cited the report on September 3, said NIQ characterized the category’s recent direction as “stagnant.”

The figures cover off-premise sales, a retail segment that generally includes purchases made for consumption away from bars and restaurants. That makes the report an important measure of household buying activity in stores and other take-home channels, where suppliers and retailers watch scanner data closely for signs of changes in demand.

The gap between the decline in dollar sales and the larger drop in volume suggests revenue held up better than case movement, although the available NIQ figures did not provide a detailed breakdown of pricing, promotions, or sales mix. Without that added detail, the report points more clearly to slower movement at retail than to any single reason for the weaker performance.

NIQ’s latest reading adds to a pattern that many beverage companies have been watching for months as consumers remain selective in store aisles. The report excerpt did not identify a specific driver for the August slowdown, and it did not indicate a clear rebound in the period measured. Instead, the data suggest that off-premise demand was still under pressure late in the summer, even during a time of year that is closely watched by brewers, winemakers, distillers, and distributors.

That matters across the beverage industry because off-premise sales are a core signal for how products are performing in supermarkets, liquor stores, convenience outlets, and other retail accounts tracked by scanner services. When that demand is flat or declining, suppliers may need to adjust shipment plans, promotions, and product assortments. Retailers may also use the data to reconsider shelf space and replenishment decisions in beer, wine, and spirits, especially heading into the fall selling season.

The report released this week did not include a category-by-category breakdown in the excerpt cited by Brewbound, so it was not possible to determine from the available data whether beer, wine, or spirits drove a larger share of the decline. Even so, the overall numbers show that the beverage alcohol business in off-premise retail has not yet moved out of its recent holding pattern.

For companies that depend on retail takeaway sales, the late-August scan results offer another sign that top-line pressure remains in place. A 3.3% drop in dollars and a 5.2% decline in volume, across $8.4 billion in tracked sales, leave the industry with a cautious view of near-term demand in one of its most closely followed channels.