The Polish pull
With the rate of Polish migrant workers entering the UK slowing, what does the future hold for Polish beers? asks Noli Dinkovski
One of the first things you're likely to see once you've touched down at Krakow airport is a welcome from a leading Polish beer brand.
Billboard posters exclaim "Zywiec tonight", in expectation that visitors will be quenching their thirst with the 5.6% abv pale, bittersweet Pilsner-style lager readily available in Poland's second city, home to seven million tourists a year.
Of course, you don't have to travel abroad to get your hands on Zywiec (pronounced "je-vi-ets"), as it's one of a number of fast-growing Polish beers available over here.
This growth has been spurred on by the well-documented influx of Polish migrant workers to the UK, following the country's admission to the EU in 2004. Home Office figures show more than half a million Poles have moved to the UK since, bringing an estimated £4bn of disposable income a year.
So it's no surprise that sales of Polish beer brands in the UK are soaring. Last year, SABMiller reported triple-digit growth for Tyskie and Lech, while Carlsberg was confident enough to introduce Okocim on draught.
Latest Home Office figures, however, indicate that the Polish influx has peaked. Drawn by higher salaries back home against a fall in the value of the pound, the number approved to work in the UK fell by 10% over the 12 months to the end of 2007. How will the Poles' return home impact on the success of Polish beer brands?
Brand Distribution and Development (BDD) — UK distributor for Zywiec — concedes its target audience is typically young, single or recently married economic migrants employed in the trade and service industries.
But BDD's Laurence McCarthy says there is a crossover element to Zywiec's customer base too: "Other drinkers include students and young people of all races in outlets such as JD Wetherspoon, and more affluent, seasoned beer connoisseurs who are likely to be in or around a large city."
McCarthy adds that the evidence of Poles returning home and the pressure from currency appreciation of the Zloty is affecting where people buy their beer, but not necessarily consumption.
"We're seeing a shift from bottles to cans, and on-trade to off-trade, but, of course, this is not unique to Polish brands," he says. "We are also gaining non-Polish consumers, so the outlook is still positive. We expect growth of 15% or so in volume over the current year."
It is a sentiment echoed by SABMiller — despite admitting the bulk of Tyskie and Lech is drunk by UK-based Poles, it says British people are discovering the brands in local pubs and shops.
"And once they try them, they often start drinking them on a more regular basis," says Miller Brands UK corporate services director John Littleton.
"Many Brits visit Poland and experience these brands there, before drinking them on returning to the UK."
The distributors' buoyant mood is reflected in continued product diversification. Following on from Okocim's draught move, Zywiec is now also available on draught in a number of Polish bars, pubs, clubs and restaurants in places as diverse as Glasgow, Blackburn and London.
Likewise, a draught trial of Lech is taking place at the moment, but Littleton adds that it is unlikely to be a major part of his company's strategy in the future.
As the population of Polish migrant workers flattens out, is there a danger Polish brands will get lost in the clutter of world beers flooding the UK market? Littleton says while there will always be a group of experimental world beers that change and churn rapidly, there will also be a cluster of strong beers that gain loyalty and become favourites with consumers: "These brands will continue to help premiumise the category further and help alleviate the danger of beer becoming commoditised."
McCarthy says that no matter where the beer is from, quality, craft and heritage ultimately win long- term loyalty.
"These beers may not excite with stellar growth in sales, but they will steadily grow and survive the fads."
