Beer in North Macedonia

PRE-COVID-19 PERFORMANCE

Craft beer gains in popularity in 2019

Macedonian alcoholic drinks consumers remain conservative, with beer sales continuing to be dominated by lager in 2019. Craft beer products, whether within lager or beyond, are new to the North Macedonian market, only appearing towards the end of the review period.

Diversification of beer helps to attract consumers from other alcoholic drinks categories

The diversification of the beer offer through the development of craft products helped the overall category to gain consumers from other areas of alcoholic drinks, particularly wine and spirits, at the end of the review period. Younger adults of legal drinking age increasingly favoured higher-end and craft products in beer, while female consumers saw a notable shift from wine to beer.

Leader targets craft trend

In 2019, Pivara Skopje ad slightly increased its already strong lead in beer thanks to the performance of its Skopsko beer brand portfolio. In addition to its own beer brands, Pivara Skopje ad officially distributes the Heineken and Amstel lager brands owned by Heineken NV.

2020 AND BEYOND

COVID-19 impact

On-trade volumes of beer are expected to fall by 25% in 2020 in light of the impact of COVID-19. This compares to an expected 3% rise in volumes forecast for 2020 during research conducted in 2019, before the spread of the disease.

Affected products within beer

Measures to limit the spread of COVID-19 are having a particularly marked impact on the trend towards higher-end products, which was a prominent feature of the latter part of the review period. Premium lager and craft beer both rely heavily on on-trade sales, as fashionable young adults of legal drinking age opt for such products in social situations.

Recovery and opportunities

Beer is expected to return to growth in volume terms in 2021, and maintain a positive year-on-year performance throughout the rest of the forecast period. Off-trade is set to see stronger growth over 2019-2024 as a whole, primarily as a consequence of the dramatic decline of on-trade volumes in 2020 due to the closure of cafés, bars, and restaurants.

Files are delivered directly into your account within a few minutes of purchase.