Not only should your trade increase in the run-up to Christmas, but customers' drinking patterns will also change - so you need to vary your usual order accordingly.
It's not just Santa who only visits at Christmas: plenty of people who may not go to the pub from one end of the year to the next will pop in for their annual Christmas drink with the gang from the office, or simply to escape the brussels sprout mountain on Christmas Eve.
Less welcome - but essential nonetheless - will be the local constabulary enforcing the Christmas drink-driving crackdown. For the most part, the message has proved to be successful, with the number of motorists found to be over the limit falling in recent years. There are ways pubs can help, often with the support of drinks suppliers.
Also likely to be out in force for the festive season are local trading standards officers, taking the opportunity to make sure no pubs are serving short measures or passing off cheap spirits as premium brands.
Environmental health officers tend to be busy at this time of year as well - although many of the people who swear they are suffering from food poisoning are in fact merely discovering too late that a second helping of Christmas pudding and cream doesn't mix all that well with a few pints of best.
If none of that puts you off, now is the time to be planning your Christmas campaign. It may sound obvious, but the first thing you should do is make sure that there's going to be enough to drink in stock. Not only should trade increase in the run-up to Christmas, but customers' drinking patterns also change - at what other time of year does anyone order a snowball (see below) - so you need to vary your usual order accordingly.
Seasonal drinks
Christmas is the time that the "seasonal" drinks make their biggest marketing push. While a lot of the big brands' marketing spend is focused on the off-trade, encouraging consumers to make that once-a-year purchase of a bottle of liqueur or malt whisky, there is also support available for the on-trade through tailored activity by brand owners.
Pernod Ricard UK is including a washroom poster advertising campaign in the support package for its range of brands, which includes Jameson Irish whiskey, Jacob's Creek wine, and Havana Club white rum. There will also be a sampling campaign for the flagship Pernod brand, "challenging" customers in targeted bars and pubs to try the French spirit for themselves.
Ian Tottman, general manager of Pernod Ricard UK Spirits & Wines, says: "Barstaff education and sampling plays an important part in our pre-Christmas activity, and all the other initiatives help build consumer demand for the wines and spirits within our portfolio. We have extensive on-trade promotions in place that include everything from cocktail competitions to consumer offers."
Drinks which you should consider ordering extra stocks of include:
- Premium whisky - drinkers will treat themselves to a quality nip
- Sherry - a popular seasonal line, with key brands such as Harvey's Bristol Cream having invested heavily in reaching new consumers this year
- Liqueurs - the likes of Bailey's, Tia Maria and Southern Comfort are positioned as "party" brands which also appeal to occasional drinkers
- Wines - particularly to accompany your Christmas menu
- Soft drinks - don't forget those drivers, and consider supporting the drink-drive campaign by providing discounted or even free soft drinks for the designated driver in a party.
Philip Harris, licensee of gastro-pub the Sportsman, in Whitstable on the North Kent coast, uses the build-up to Christmas to generate sales of premium cognacs.
The Sportsman, which has earned a place in the Independent list of the 50 best pubs in the UK, offers customers a wide selection of Hine cognacs.
Mr Harris said: "Fine cognacs such as Hine are very popular during the festive season, especially after dinner, as people want to try something traditional and a bit special. Offering a comprehensive cognac range is an important revenue source for our business and we build sales by talking drinkers through what's available and encouraging them to trade up."
However, don't forget you also have the opportunity to sell extra quantities of your regular drinks range, including beer.
Allan Tudor, on-trade sales director of Interbrew UK, says: "We have been emphasising for some time that targeting the drinking occasion is the key for retailers and this is particularly true at Christmas."
Eating out
The increase in eating out and big night out drinking occasions at Christmas is an opportunity for publicans as well, says Mr Tudor.
"For many families, this is the one time of year they are together and so they tend to go out to mark the occasion. This means there is a big uplift in family occasions, particularly between Christmas and New Year, which often tend to be linked with eating out.
"The food occasion is also a drinks occasion. At the moment, wine takes precedence over beer in eating-out occasions. We believe there is a huge, untapped opportunity for retailers to target the food occasion with initiatives that put beer at the centre of eating out. Beer suits the casual, informal eating-out occasion which includes eating out as a group, the majority of which takes place in pubs and restaurants."
One Interbrew initiative designed to focus on this market is the new one-litre bottle of Stella Artois, designed for shared occasions. Mr Tudor says: "Stella Artois is already an accompaniment to food and this innovative new pack will reinforce that association by presenting the brand in a way that is totally relevant to eating occasions."
The company says it makes commercial sense for retailers to put the display focus on big brands which traditionally benefit more than other brands from the seasonal sales rush.
Mr Tudor says: "Big brands benefit during periods of peak demand because a large number of people who are not regular beer drinkers enter the market at Christmas and they will be looking for brands they know and trust. It is important that retailers reflect this consumer demand by putting the display emphasis on well-known brands and ensuring they are given a high profile over the Christmas period."
Christmas checklist
- Make sure regular customers know your opening hours over the Christmas period
- Publicise special events such as children's parties and New Year's Eve disco
- Plan and publicise your Christmas menu
- Talk to suppliers about Christmas promotions and sponsorships
- Stock up on seasonal drinks
- Plan your own drinks promotions if needed
- Plan staff rotas in good time, and book casual staff if necessary
- Order additional stock to take into account changed delivery schedules
Christmas cocktail: The snowball
As Christmassy as cranberry sauce and brandy butter, the snowball was presumably invented by advocaat manufacturers to make sure they could sell their curious product at least once a year.
If you really want to mix your own, it involves adding a white spirit, such as vodka, to a couple of egg yolks, evaporated milk, vanilla essence, and sugar - but most pubs probably have a bottle of the premixed version right at the back of the rack of bottles they use the least.
If not, add some to your order now.
To make a snowball:
- Put a couple of ice cubes in the bottom of a tall glass
- Pour on a 50ml (double) measure of advocaat
- Add 200ml of lemonade
- Add a dash of lime cordial
- Stir well with a swizzle stick