Latin America

Technological advances in 2024 will continue to reshape consumer behaviour. This annual report explores the top five digital shopper trends that will redefine commerce the most in the year ahead. Some of the trends included in this report’s edition…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries in Q4 2023 and 2024. Global inflation is moderating, although divergence remains among the key economies. Higher volatility in the energy markets and disruption of…

While beer suffered volume decline in 2022, the picture was much more positive for wine, with double-digit volume growth, in spite of high inflation stemming from an energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. That being said, the appreciation of…

Still light grape wine in Brazil predominantly consists of still red wine, which accounted for three quarters of total volume sales in 2022. This category is heavily reliant on imports. However, inflation and increased costs in Europe led to higher…

Overall, spirits registered a slight increase in volume sales in 2022, but performance varied widely across different products. Spirits that registered healthy growth were premium offerings of tequila (and mezcal), as well as whiskeys, with some…

Whiskies experienced rapid total volume growth in Brazil in 2022, even amidst the challenging macroeconomic conditions and the income constraints of Brazilian consumers. The whiskies renaissance in Brazil can be attributed to various trends,…

RTDs in Costa Rica are growing in popularity, especially among younger consumers as they are often sweet and this suits a less developed palette. In 2022, RTDs registered healthy double-digit volume growth. However, in spite of this significant…

While RTDs has experienced consistent total volume growth over the years, even throughout the pandemic, it is currently facing some challenges, which caused a slowdown in its momentum in 2022. One of the main issues is the relatively high unit prices…

Cider/Perry continued to be niche product in terms of value and volume sales. However, it registered high double-digit volume growth in 2022. Cider/perry benefitted from the removal of pandemic restrictions and increased socialising through on-trade…

It is important to understand consumer behaviour during times of high inflation, especially in Brazil, including the inflationary situation in 2022. Inflation has been a long-standing issue in Brazil, and the memory of high inflation during the 1990s…

It was a negative year for beer in the Dominican Republic in 2022, with a significant decline in volume sales. The war in Ukraine had a negative impact, with the resultant energy crisis leading to high inflation and dampening volume sales and also…

Following the remarkable success of beer in 2021, the category demonstrated resilience and continued to achieve total volume growth in 2022. The return of socialisation, events, and on-trade consumption occasions played a significant role in…

The picture was bleak for alcoholic drinks in Dominican Republic in 2022. The war in Ukraine had a negative impact, with the resultant energy crisis leading to high inflation and dampening volume sales somewhat. That being said, the appreciation of…

2022 marked a significant step in Brazil’s post-COVID-19 recovery, as consumers began to fully embrace socialisation and return to their former habits. Many people went back to their offices, resumed open-air sports, and reconnected with friends by…

Currently, the main threat to the wine industry of Uruguay is imports of Argentinean wines. Local consumers have easy access to these wines, which are very good quality and very cheap in comparison with Uruguayan wines. Although imported wines pay…

Due to the economic climate in 2022, partnered with the ongoing cost-conscious behaviour triggered by the start of COVID-19, low-cost options have been preferred among many consumers. This has led to the strong performance of beer and RTDs. As such,…

Wine registered very healthy volume growth in 2022. Part of the reason for the positive performance was increased socialising, as society fully opened up post pandemic lockdowns. The return of foreign tourists also contributed to the growth, as well…

Wine enjoyed a strong performance in 2022 with off-trade and on-trade volume sales both registering robust increases. The wine industry had faced shortages and higher logistics costs in 2021 leading to weak results. During 2022, there was a complete…

The overall volume sales of spirits climbed in 2022. Although the volume sales through off-trade channels of almost all categories fell during the year, the total market volume ended on the positive side. Total volume sales were boosted by the growth…

Due to the rising premiumisation trend, which continued into 2022, the sector has grown considerably, favouring sales of beverages in spirits. As such, 2022 saw accelerated growth in the sales volume for tequila, bourbon / other US whiskey, gin and…

Spirits registered very healthy double-digit volume growth in 2022. Part of the reason for the positive performance was increased socialising, as society fully opened up post pandemic lockdowns. The return of foreign tourists also contributed to the…

Even though 2022 was marked by inflationary pressures, spirits witnessed rapid growth in Colombia, driven by the further recovery of the on-trade channel where double-digit volume growth was visible. Consumers were eager to socialize after so much…

RTDs was one of the biggest winners in the Uruguayan alcoholic drinks market in 2022. Of the different RTDs segments, spirit-based drinks put in the best performance over the review period as a whole. Growth has been in line with the trend towards…

2022 was a year of accelerated growth for RTDs, with the landscape having seen ongoing growth since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This has made RTDs an attractive proposition for both local and foreign companies, which have found opportunities…

RTDs in Costa Rica are growing in popularity, especially among younger generations as they are often sweet, also often have low-calorie content and a low ABV, especially RTDs such as hard seltzers. Parents also like RTDs as introductory drinks for…

RTDs are experiencing significant growth in Colombia, with established categories like spirit-based, wine-based, and malt-based RTDs, as well as new hard seltzer products entering in 2022. Players like Fábrica de Licores y Alcoholes de Antioquia…

Cider has been losing share amongst Uruguay alcoholic drinks options for the last 15 years. Although it witnessed an unexpected strong bounce in 2020 (related to voluntary home seclusion during the pandemic) and further marginal growth in 2021, the…

Cider/perry remained by far the smallest of the five main alcoholic drinks categories in Colombia in 2022, and was also the only one to contract in volume terms. There is no real tradition of cider/perry consumption in the country and so the category…

Almost all beers performed well in 2022, both in the off-trade and on-trade channels, and amongst beers, imported brands performed better than the average. Stella Artois and Nova Schin were amongst the most successful of the imported brands in 2022.

Due to the ongoing economic and social crisis, Peruvian consumers have been turning to beer, which offers price points aligned with reduced disposable budgets. Additionally, Heineken's entry in 2019 saw a greater offer of brands available at various…

Beer registered healthy volume growth in 2022. Part of the reason for the positive performance was increased socialising, as society fully opened up post pandemic lockdowns. The FIFA World Cup in December also contributed to the high levels of…

Beer sales have been accelerating in Colombia over the review period, and this is reflected in the improvement in per capita consumption. Colombians tend to be heavy drinkers especially at weekends, but this pattern is shifting towards more moderate…

Macroeconomic indicators played a huge role in the evolution of the alcoholic drinks market in Uruguay in 2022. As in most countries, inflation was a major issue during the period. Inflation ended at around 9% in 2022, the third highest recorded in…

In 2022, positive growth was seen from all alcoholic drink categories, with the return of socialising following the outbreak of COVID-19 increasing total volume sales. This has given rise to consumption occasions, allowing beer and RTDs to gain new…

The impact of COVID-19 has come to an end and all alcoholic drink is performing well in 2022. However, despite a rebounding on-trade, the off-trade has surpassed 2019 volume sales in many categories while the on-trade has not, as at-home consumption…

Costa Rica registered healthy volume growth in alcoholic drinks in 2022. Part of the reason for the positive performance was increased socialising, as society fully opened up post pandemic lockdowns. The FIFA World Cup in December also contributed to…

Volume sales of alcoholic drinks continued to exhibit robust growth in 2022, with the fastest pace observed in the on-trade channel, as the strong desire to socialize gathered momentum. After suffering some supply issues in the previous year, beer…

Players continued to invest in the expansion of wine in the country in 2022 with this delivering positive results. Wine sales continued growing in total volume terms in 2022, with wine reaching new consumers as well as seeing an increase in per…

The consumption of wine has increased considerably in Ecuador due to it being an accessible and fashionable beverage for aspirational consumers. In 2022, premium and economy wines are both gaining popularity. Higher income groups are less price…

The popularity of Argentine wine imports has experienced a significant surge in 2022, building on a trend that began in 2020. The fluctuations in the Argentine currency have been advantageous for local importers, resulting in lower prices for…

Industrias Licoreras de Guatemala SA has the widest portfolio of spirits in the country, with popular brands that attract different target audiences, ages, and budgets. For example, within the premium segment the company offers Zacapa Centenario,…

The spirits category has been greatly affected by the increase in ICE tax (Special Consumption Tax) for alcoholic beverages, which is a tax levied on each litre of pure alcohol. Since the spirits category has the highest levels of alcohol, it has…

The migration of consumption to lower-value categories is slowing the growth in value sales of spirits, specifically the expansion of low-priced beers. This trend is particularly evident in traditional sales channels, where low-priced beers dominate…

Cervecería Centroamericana SA successfully launched its Karma brand of spirit-based RTDs during the review period. The brand has taken advantage of its lower price positioning (GTQ5 per 350ml unit), a strong distribution reach in modern, traditional…

Azende Corp Cía Ltda continues to lead the RTD category in 2022 with its Switch brand. Aimed at young adults, Azende has used a strong social media campaign with a funny and fresh message to engage its audience. Switch is a well-known spirit-based…

In 2022, RTD sales received a boost from product innovations as local producers ventured into the development of hard seltzer offerings, expanding the consumption within the category. In Bolivia, hard seltzers still occupy a niche segment, primarily…

The consumption of cider in Bolivia is primarily focused on holiday seasons such as Christmas and New Year celebrations, where it is typically used for toasting. Bolivian consumers have a preference for sweeter ciders, which they often pair with…

Beer dominates sales of alcoholic drinks in the country in total volume terms, but despite this these products continue to see growing interest from Guatemalan consumers. Beer saw strong growth in total volume terms in 2022 boosted by the sustained…

A number of key sporting events boosted beer sales in 2022. Guayaquil hosted the final of the Copa Libertadores bringing many tourists in from Latin America, most of them Brazilians who enjoy drinking beer. Amstel launched a special commemorative…

Sales of premium lager beers experienced a surge in 2022, driven by consumers in higher socioeconomic segments who were less affected by the pandemic's economic impact, as well as those in medium socioeconomic segments seeking indulgence during…