For sure the sales in the large-scale distribution and through e-commerce have grown during the 8 weeks of the Italian lockdown, but as expected, the general sales have dropped.
This was caused by the Ho.re.ca. sector’s lockdown, and the consequent fall of consumption of alcohol outside of home.
The negative peak for the wine selling in the Ho.Re.Ca. sector was during the month of April; the lowest point was -90%. Starting from June a big turnaround was registered, especially thanks to the restaurants and clubs that are mainly opened and crowded during the dinner time. The restaurants that are usually frequented during the lunch time have been penalized by the smart working system.
The spirits, during April, have reached a point even lower than the wines, that is -97%. Also, the recovery is being way slower than the wines’ turnaround. This is caused mainly by the clubs being closed, where the 33% of the total spirits selling is.
For the entire 2020, as much as it is difficult to make any predictions, the losses of the alcohol market will probably be quite large. Federvini assumes the following loss: -29% for wines and -34% for spirits.
The overall food & beverage market, still referring to the outside of home consumption, will probably lose about 33%. The perspective, and hope, is that a V-shaped development occurs. This would mean that, after the lowest point in April, the sales would keep on growing constantly, reaching a higher point in December.
