Behind the scenes of Dry July with bars, breweries and bottle-Os

Selling Dry July ‘all year round’

Australia’s largest drinks retailer Endeavour Group has come to expect non-alcoholic product sales across Dan Murphy’s and BWS to double every July.

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“We do have some increased activity around zero alcohol options in our stores this month,” said Endeavour Group buying and merchandising director Tim Carroll. “We are also hosting many in-store tastings in BWS and Dan Murphy’s across the country.”

More broadly, sales in this category have grown 150 per cent in the last 24 months, and the liquor stores now stock more than 300 of these products on shelves.

“Customers are not driven by occasions like Dry July as much as they used to be,” Carroll said. “Instead, customers are asking for zero alcohol options all year round and for many occasions.”

Within this rapidly growing category, alcohol-free beer is by far the most popular and mature. The chief executive of Australia’s largest independent brewer Brick Lane Brewery, where cult favourite Heaps Normal is produced, says retailers contribute to a “very large increase” in sales and take on a lot of the in-store promotion.

“Dry July, for the last few years, have been somewhat of a novelty. This year, to me, it’s almost a turning point,” Brick Lane Brewery chief executive Paul Bowker said.

“Stores haven’t had to completely reinvent themselves to bring out all this stock and displays of non-alcohol beer because it’s already there … For the first time, it’s not really starting from scratch this year.”

He hopes Dry July acts as a window of opportunity for traditional beer drinkers to convert into lifelong consumers. “These products … should be part of the drinking repertoire all year round.”

Australia’s biggest players in the beverage space are determined not to be outdone by new contenders. In the last 24 months, Lion Co have launched three zero-alcohol beers (Heineken 0.0, James Squire Zero, and XXXX Zero).

“That is a demand that has been driven by our consumers,” said Lion Co chief marketing officer Anubha Sahasrabuddhe. “Of course, our responsibility and job is to fulfil their needs better than our competition.”

Meanwhile, Asahi-owned Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) counts Carlton Zero, Peroni Libera and Great Northern Zero in its portfolio. Solotel’s Lacey says the most-ordered zero alcohol beers are a mix of incumbents and new players, with Carlton Zero and Heineken 0.0 as popular as Heaps Normal and Aboriginal family-run company Sobah.

Those in the drinks business have awoken to the fact that they’ve found a way to unlock a new market segment. “It gives people more occasions to enjoy a beer,” said CUB CEO Danny Celoni.

“Imagine if we’re attracting new consumers to a category that has been previously untapped,” Solotel’s Lacey said.