Alco Beverage Is One of The Trickiest Categories In India?

Not only is it tightly regulated but also restricted widely to be marketed using traditional media like Television and newspapers.

Moreover, there are complexities across the entire supply chain:

1. Each State functions differently since it is a State-governed/regulated industry.
2. So a brand launch in each State functions differently with differently priced MRPs and differently designed packaging labels (remember cheap alcohol in Goa ;).
3. Some States have privately owned liquor shops, while some have govt and some states have a mix of both. So your go-to-market has to incorporate this variable and build the pricing strategy accordingly.
4. Given the above, you have to plan differently for distributors/retailers/consumer schemes for different states. They can get pretty daunting at times.
5. Manufacturing is a different ball game altogether – different states will offer different incentive schemes if you own manufacturing in the respective State.
6. Alco bev is an expensive affair – there are licenses involved in every stage of the value chain and the cost of doing business is quite hefty for each stakeholder involved.
7. It’s a supremely competitive industry where you will have to fight competition not just in consumer marketing but also aggressively in the Sales and distribution channels.
8. Since the marketing avenues are heavily restricted – you have to think differently to position your brand in the consumer’s life cycle vis-a-vis the competition.

But on the flip side, the industry has become quite exciting in the last decade with an impressive Y-O-Y growth rate. Here is why it’s promising now to launch an alco bev brand in India:

1. 70-75% of the total alco bev business comes from only 5 states – Maharashtra, Karnataka, Goa, Delhi and Hyderabad
2. Premiumization is driving the top/bottom for existing players – consumers are upping their consumption game and spending more on fine wine, finer whiskeys, craft beers et al
3. Recruitment of new franchises and target audiences is driving increased consumption. Let’s catch up over “coffee” has now changed to Let’s catch up over a “drink” for Gen Z.
4. This offers immense opportunities to the brands to “catch them young” and get younger consumers hooked on to their brand pretty early on
5. Marketing to Gen Z is exciting – they are flirtatious and experimental and open to trying newer things and experiences. Talk about concepts like wine-in-a-can, hard seltzers, RTD cocktails, craft beers, new-aged spirits, and unique concepts that India did not witness 5 years back.
6. B2B space exploding with out-of-home consumption rising in the HORECA segment, post-pandemic.
7. The ever-increasing interest of Angel, VCs, and PEs in the new age also bev startups and categories

But we can built one profitable brand for you!