Vinimark review of SA wine market 2023

Leading local wine distributor Vinimark has released its latest local market review, covering off consumption sales out data captured between January and December 2023.

‘Bag-in-box’ wine is performing well, sales by volume having increased by 15% since 2019. The volume is currently sitting at 94,8 million litres sold in 2023, compared to approximately 90 million litres sold in 2022 and only 55 million litres in 2019. Volume has almost doubled in five years.

Tetra Pak wine is another form of alternative packaging that is doing well, seeming to resonate more with consumers than wine in PET plastic bottles. Sales of Tetra Pak containers increased by 19,7%, with 14,9 million litres sold in 2023, up from 11,8 million in 2022; PET packaging increased sales by just 5,3%, and with a year-to-date increase to 2,8 million litres sold last year, compared to 2,6 million in 2022.

Sales of wine in a glass bottle, meanwhile, have decreased from 61 million litres in 2022 to 59,3 million litres in 2023 – that’s down by 1,2%.

As is well documented, South Africans are under economic pressure, and it looks as though consumers in the lower income brackets might be feeling the pinch the most, judging by sales in the sub-R80 per bottle range that have decreased since 2019 and are down since last year too. Over the last 12 months there has been growth in the R100-R200 category and more substantial growth in the R200-plus category.

Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc are leading in growth when it comes to white wine, with sales in Sauvignon Blanc and white blends taking a slight downturn even though Sauvignon Blanc is still the largest single cultivar. Red blends are gaining ground and experiencing growth, but Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot, Pinotage and Rosé are in a modest decline. Pitting red vs white, red is still the more popular choice with consumers.

Of the 1,121 brands surveyed, it is the top 4% that generate 80% of the sales; and of the 9,296 SKUs, just 496 (5%) are the ones generating 80% of the sales.