Wine in North Macedonia

PRE-COVID-19 PERFORMANCE

Premiumisation trend

The latter part of the review period witnessed a premiumisation trend in wine in line with the major trends affecting the category globally, with consumers displaying a growing interest in small wineries and premium wines. Many of the leading domestic wine makers invested significant money and effort in the launch of premium wine brands targeting the upper mid- and high-income consumer groups.

Other sparkling wine grows strongly from a low base

Other sparkling wine was the strongest performer in wine in 2019, achieving double-digit volume growth from its low base. Growth was driven by increasing consumer interest in prosecco and sekt and the improved availability of other sparkling wine types in the market.

Numerous domestic wineries in a highly fragmented category

In 2019, wine remained a highly fragmented category in North Macedonia, which has more than 70 officially registered domestic wineries. Most of these wineries are small in size, mostly family-owned businesses with a significant export orientation.

2020 AND BEYOND

COVID-19 impact

On-trade volume sales of wine are expected to fall by 27% in 2020 in light of the impact of COVID-19. This compares to a 3% rise in volumes forecast for 2020 during research conducted in 2019 prior to the spread of the disease.

Affected products within wine

All wine categories have been hit hard by the closure of on-trade outlets aimed at limiting the spread of COVID-19. Lockdown has had an especially significant impact on sales of other sparkling wine, which is expected to see a dramatic decline in total volumes in 2020 despite dynamic off-trade growth because of its marked bias towards on-trade channels.

Recovery and opportunities

Wine is expected to return to total volume growth in 2021 thanks primarily to the reopening of on-trade outlets, and is set to see a positive performance throughout the rest of the forecast period. Other sparkling wine is set to see the strongest volume growth over the forecast period, as it benefits from returning on-trade demand and the notable expansion of its presence in off-trade channels.

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