In what is still perhaps the most male dominated part of the wine and spirits industry, Jane Renwick, director of fine wine at London City Bond (LCB), is on a mission to imbue women with the confidence to pursue a career in warehousing and logistics as part of the celebrations for International Women’s Day (8 March).
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This time of year, is when I must start polishing my crystal ball in the hope I can come up with a few nuggets of prophecy for the spirits industry, for the year ahead. And whilst I’m not Mystic Meg, I foresee the year to come as one of change; a year filled with lofty highs and disappointing lows. The way I see it, 2024 has seen a few big success stories, which have laid the groundwork to enjoy more success in 2025. But 2024 was also a tricky year for many producers, and, with plenty of regulatory and legislative upheaval expected, 2025 does look like it might have a few surprises in store for us. Here are my predictions on what could be, a rollercoaster of a year, for the great British booze industry.
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Drawn from our turn-of-year Looking Back, Forging Ahead series, we round up suppliers’ comments ahead of the end of duty easement on 1 February.
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SWA chief executive has claimed the industry is “not crying wolf” over the impact of the double-digit rise in spirit duty since August 2023. According to Treasury figures, the revenue from spirits duty fell by £255m for the period running 1 August 2023 to 30 November 2024, which equates to an eye-watering half a million-pound loss in revenue every day for HMRC.
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Female leaders from across the drinks trade have come together to launch a new business network aimed at driving inclusivity for women.
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With issues such as cash flow, VAT, businesses rates and staffing all placing continued strain on the UK drinks industry, businesses have just a few days left to decide which parties’ pledges have the best hope of steering the sector towards prosperity.
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The Wine Society CEO Steve Finlan calls out the government’s lack of engagement with the hard-pressed UK drinks trade.
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Industry chiefs have expressed a modicum of optimism about potential changes to the current plans for the new duty escalator, which could possibly avoid plunging businesses into a tangle of red tape – if only the government continues (or maybe begins) to listen to reason.
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New Zealand Winegrowers has unveiled a new logo and global brand identity, rolled out across the organisation's key international markets.
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Nick Gillett, MD of Mangrove UK, on the uphill battle smaller brands face with ever more powerful players dominating the industry.
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I like to think I’m a man with common sense. Yet, when I look at the stifling, strangling system of regulations we face as an industry in the UK, I see absolutely zero of it.
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‘Net Zero’, ‘Carbon reduction’, ‘Sustainability’, and ‘Offsetting’ – all good stuff and we’re now used to bandying these terms around like they’re going out of fashion. But whilst brands are waxing lyrical about their green credentials and how they’re busy saving the planet, how many actually are?
Whether intentionally or not, more than a few drinks brands at best ‘polishing’ their green credentials to look better than they are – and some are just lying. Beyond misleading conscious consumers and reaping undeserved competitive advantages, it pisses me off, because it’s actively halting the industry’s Net Zero progress which is where we should be placing our focus.
WineGB will be returning to London this September for a celebration of all things English wine – including another year of rising sales.
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English and Welsh wine appears to have entered a new era of maturity, as ‘newcomers’ to the scene continue to rake in accolades alongside more established names.
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Nenad Trifunovic, director of business development at Wine & More, reflects on the future of a sector that is already feeling the heat.
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Out-of-home food and drink sales are in growth in all of Britain’s 10 biggest city centres, with higher spend-per-visit driving growth rather than footfall.
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Staff shortages in the hospitality industry are reaching critical levels and causing nearly half (45%) of operators to cut trading hours or capacity in order to cope, a new survey has said.
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Several headline spirit businesses have announced new staff appointments in March, including the Cotswolds Distillery and Mangrove UK.
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Using the latest ONS labour market statistics published today, UKHospitality has produced data showing that current vacancies in hospitality are more than 100% higher than the corresponding pre-Covid period.
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Since March 2020 the Champagne market has been on ice, with little cause for celebration during a global pandemic that has reduced so many gatherings and engagements to a Zoom call.
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