For several years, wine merchants in the Gard Rhone region have noticed a drop in traffic in January. According to them, Dry January undoubtedly plays a role.
Le Dry January is not without consequences for wine merchants in the region. “There is less of customers in January, observe Mélissa Gache, sales manager at Maison Sinnae de Chusclan. The phenomenon has been visible for 3-4 years, and each year the repercussions are becoming more and more felt. Everyone talks about it, even the customers who continue to come.” The manager emphasizes, however, that the start of the year is a historically slow period for sales, with Dry January only accentuating an already existing trend.
Au Cellar of Chartreux, in Saint-Gervais, Léa Failla she also feels the effects du Dry January. Dfor two years, the establishment has been expanding its alcohol-free range in January. “We are running a campaign on social networks. 35-45 year olds are our heart target, they see the opportunity to do detox, declared the wine merchant. And the success of the operation encourages us to maintain more and more alcohol-free products all year round.”
Une evolution of consumption patterns?
Rémy Barrot, manager of the Vins sur Cèze boutique has Bagnols-sur-Cèze, develops also an alcohol-free offer, which sees its share in sales increase although it still remains “minimal”. LThe wine merchant considers Moreover that consumers prefer from now on quality over quantity: “In December, I had fewer customers but a more expensive average basket. My turnover even increased by 1% compared to last year, while I recorded 5% fewer customer tickets.”
-A drop in the attendance, without necessarily noticingtis such a significant drop in turnover: this is also what indicatesnt national dataes. Although wine remains one of the French's favorite alcoholic drinks (at the neckneck and neck with beer), its consumption continues to decline. In 2022, French people aged 15 and over were drinking on average 47 liters of wine per year, compared to 57.5 liters in 2001. More they are ready topurse larger sums: the share of 18-65 ans who allocate more than €10 to the purchase of a bottle of wine increased from 28% in 2014 to 79% in 2022.
