Ready to Drink

Reaction to Tesco's move on alcohol prices

21-Feb-2008

Why not add your voice to the debate? Click on the link to the right and have your say...Andy Bond, CEO of ASDA "We are already talking to government...

ALMR: Tesco all talk and no action on cut price booze

21-Feb-2008 By Ewan Turney

The Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers has slammed Tesco for ducking its responsibilities

Brits most generous round-buyers

28-Jan-2008

Brits are the most generous round buyers in Europe, according to a new survey. An SAB Miller survey of European drinking culture revealed that 82% of...

SoCo promo evokes Mardi Gras

17-Jan-2008 By Rosie Davenport

Southern Comfort is putting pubs at the centre of its plans with a £1m carnival-themed promotion. In a fresh direction, owner Bacardi-Brown Forman...

Stocking Up for Christmas: Best of the brews

21-Sep-2007

Marston'sMarston's Ugly Sisters is brewed using golden promise malt and fuggles and goldings hops , while Jennings' Redbreast "drinks with a full...

RTDs: Market overview

07-Sep-2007

According to Nielsen, sales of RTDs are down by 17 per cent in the year to May 2007. To the untrained eye it is yet another nail in the coffin for a...

RTDs: Kicking to victory

07-Sep-2007

It has been an interesting few years for Global Brands (GBL). The company started out in 1997 as a drinks distributor and then entered the...

RTDs: How to innovate

07-Sep-2007

One of the more interesting discoveries this year was that Young's pub company had de-listed all ready-to-drink (RTD) brands from its pub estate....

Premiership Preview: getting behind the brands

18-Jul-2007

Major drinks companies are once again getting behind the Premier League season, all with the aim of raising their brands' profiles among football...

Quinn's dumped as sales slump

14-Jun-2007 By Rosie Davenport

Diageo has pulled the plug on its Quinn's RTD, launched just last year with an £8.5m marketing spend. The company's new head of innovation, Liz...

Ready to re-invent

25-May-2007

The easiest feature to write in the on-trade drinks industry right now is 'The Death of RTDs'. The most recent Nielsen data on the ready-to-drink...

'Supermarket prices encourage drinking at home'

16-May-2007

Deep discounting by supermarkets is encouraging more people to drink at home, says a new report by consumer analysts Mintel. It claims the in-home...

Challenge-25 example set by Asda

10-May-2007

Asda is trialling a Challenge-25 scheme at 10 stores in Scotland and has called on its off-trade rivals to follow suit. The supermarket giant already...

Slate 20's future uncertain as Diageo reviews RTDs

08-Mar-2007 By Rosie Davenport rosie.davenport@william reed.co.u

Diageo is reviewing the future of a handful of brands, including its RTD portfolio as the sector's performance continues to slide. The company is...

Bacardi-Martini closes plant

08-Mar-2007

Bacardi-Martini is to close its Southampton bottling plant in response to "continued and significant" ready-to-drink (RTD) sector decline. Announcing...

WKD launches new TV ad campaign

06-Mar-2007

WKD is launching a national TV advertising campaign that it hopes will appeal to young adult male drinkers. The ads will continue the 'off-beat'...

Bacardi-Martini closes Southampton plant

02-Mar-2007 By John Harrington

The company blames "significant decline" in the RTD sector

Movers and shakers

27-Feb-2007 By Sarah Britton

Food developers are constantly switching jobs. Sarah Britton looks at why staff move on so frequently and how this affects manufacturers

Asda criticised over soft toy and booze combo

27-Feb-2007

A soft toy gift pack containing alcohol has been removed from sale after breaching The Portman Group's Code of Practice on the Naming, Packaging and...

Cool addition to pep-up RTDs

08-Feb-2007

Rosie Davenport rosie.davenport@william-reed.co.uk Beverage Brands is continuing to buck the trend in the RTD sector by launching a new product to...

What can you offer?

05-Dec-2006

There is no doubt when it comes to Christmas Coca-Cola rules the roost. Its TV advertising over recent years has sought to inextricably link the...

Global Brands looks forward to weekends with a vodka kick

06-Oct-2006

Global Brands is stepping up the marketing for VK Vodka Kick with a new push aligning the RTD with weekend fun. The £1.3m 'V KEND' campaign is aimed...

Stocking up for Christmas: Prepare to take stock and pile up

22-Sep-2006

Selling drinks in pubs at Christmas is the proverbial no-brainer. Just to spell it out, according to recent AC Nielsen statistics, in December alone...

Listening to their customers

11-Sep-2006

"To a large degree, consumers have now taken control of the on-trade market and are not prepared to simply accept what is put before them. The...

RTDs - down, but not out...

11-Sep-2006

"Reports of my death have been great exaggerated". So said 19th century American novelist and humourist Mark Twain. Well if the ready-to-drink (RTD)...

Ready to fight back?

11-Sep-2006

How important is new product development (NPD) for the market?Stuart Davis: I think to keep the category stimulated a degree of NPD is necessary...

The new drinking occasion…

08-Sep-2006

AGE WAITS for no brand. Certainly not RTD brands anyway. Becoming unfashionable is always the danger when you align a product so completely with a...

WKD tracks down sales data

07-Sep-2006 By Rosie Davenport

Beverage Brands is unveiling a new category-management initiative to help licensees make the most of space in their fridges. Based on AC Nielsen's...

Cinzano unveils Spritzz Up drink

21-Jul-2006 By Jo Grobel

Cinzano is launching its first extension to the brand in 144 years in a bid to attract a younger generation of drinkers. The new wine-based drink,...

Quinn's ripe for Diageo

14-Jul-2006 By Jo Grobel

Diageo is launching a TV ad campaign for Quinn's fruit ferment as part of an £8.5m marketing splash behind the newcomer. Quinn's, introduced in...

BAR. 06 round-up

16-Jun-2006

Despite not having the loudest stand (that honour belonged to Charles Wells' Corona) Cobra certainly had one of the most striking. And it was at the...

A decade pays off for WKD

22-Feb-2006

WKD is celebrating its 10th anniversary with the news that the brand has hit top spot in the latest AC Nielsen results.The figures for October and...

Funky Monkey cleared by Portman Group

17-Feb-2006

A complaint made against vodka shot brand Funky Monkey has been dismissed by The Portman Group's independent complaints panel.The panel, which rules...

Brown Cow brand owner adds Ctrl to its RTD offer

21-Nov-2005

Anglo Drinks has launched a new ready-to-drink (RTD) brand which it believes will change the face of drinks retailing.The company behind chocolate...

RTD trades on 'responsibility'

17-Nov-2005

by Rosie Davenport A new RTD that aims to tackle the trade's anxieties about social responsibility and spiking is being tested in student bars across...

RTD focus: What to stock?

03-Oct-2005

Adam Withrington concludes his ready-to-drink special with a guide to getting your offer right.In recent weeks The Publican has taken a long hard...

RTD focus: What would licensees like to see?

16-Sep-2005

Last week we heard from the RTD brand owners. This week it's the turn of the licensees. By Adam Withrington.Despite AC Nielsen statistics showing a...

Red joins Blue as WKD extends RTD offering

08-Sep-2005

by Rosie Davenport Beverage Brands is the latest supplier to inject new life into the RTD sector with the launch of a third flavour in its WKD range....

RTD Focus: How RTDs went from hero to villain

07-Sep-2005

Over the next couple of weeks Adam Withrington will take a look at the RTD sector. This week: brand owners.The Ready-To-Drink category has...

RTD Focus: Public enemy number one?

07-Sep-2005

When it comes to the responsible drinking debate RTDs will always be the industry whipping boys. Is there anything drinks companies can do to rectify...

RTD Focus: Changing times

07-Sep-2005

Brand owners are confident RTDs will regain their place at the top of the drinks market. Adam Withrington reports.There are huge challenges facing...

Beverage Brands introduces WKD Red

05-Sep-2005

Beverage Brands has unveiled a new addition to its WKD range - WKD Red.Following an initial pilot programme in the Balearic Islands last summer and...

Europe tough as Diageo profits slide

01-Sep-2005

Diageo has reported a fall in annual profits, as it tackles lower sales in a tough European market, and a continued decline in global RTD sales.The...

Coors confirms Reef could be for sale

25-Aug-2005

Coors Brewers has confirmed it is willing to sell Reef to anyone who comes up with the right offer.Rumours have been circulating that it has been...

Male market in sights of Slate 20

18-Aug-2005

by Jo de Mille Diageo is hoping a new RTD brand aimed at men can invigorate sales in the flagging market. Slate 20, which is a 4.5% abv blend of...

New products

11-Aug-2005

Wychwood Brewery brought its new limited-edition ale to the GBBF a 4.2% abv fruity ale called Battle Axe. Wychwood's head brewer Jeremy Moss said: 'I...

Avanti report points to new future for drinks advertising

29-Jul-2005

Drinks advertisers are turning away from TV commercials in favour of promoting their brands on pub and bar plasma screens, according to a new...

WKD side returns

14-Jul-2005

A new burst of TV advertising kicks off this month for WKD. The RTD is back with its 'Have you got a WKD side? campaign. In addition to TV adverts,...