As the working week draws to a close, you might be reaching for a cocktail right about now. And if you are, Bloomberg reports it’s increasingly likely that the liquor in your drink is of the premium variety, whether that may be tequila, gin or bourbon, all of which have spurred alcohol industry growth in recent years.
Now, Bacardi says it’s rum’s turn.
Bacardi is introducing two new premium rum products and relaunching an existing brand to push the category in a fancier direction. Across the market, pricier varieties make up only 15% of rum sales, according to the company. Driving that number up to 25% is worth $550 million to the industry.
In the premium space, Bacardi already has Grey Goose vodka and Dewar’s scotch. Those cater to a group of consumers who consistently spend upwards of $20 for a bottle of booze, regardless of the drink type. That’s missing for rum, according to Ned Duggan, vice president and brand managing director of Bacardi rum.
“About a third of those premium-spirits consumers do drink rum, but they trade down when they do,” he tells Bloomberg. “What this shows us is that as a category, we’ve been leaving a lot of business on the table.”
Total rum volumes in the U.S. have declined 3.6% over the past four years. While super-premium lines made up just 2.2% of volume in 2017, they jumped 34% in that four-year period, according to trade group Distilled Spirits Council.
Rum could follow the path of tequila, which has been on a growth spurt for more than a decade, Duggan says. Fifteen years ago, most tequila drinkers imbibed standard lines, with few trading up to more expensive varieties. Today, 58% of tequila sold is at a premium price point or higher, he says.
