Irish Distillers has announced that it sold 4.6 million cases of Jameson in the first six months of 2019 and recorded the single largest sales month in history, selling 940,000 cases in December last year.
In the six months to the end of December 2019, Jameson grew value ahead of volume with all regions contributing to this success, the company said.
“In 1996, we sold one million cases of Jameson for the first time, in 2010, we cracked three million and today we are celebrating the eight million case mark," said Conor McQuaid, Chairman and CEO of Irish Distillers.
In the US, the producer of some of the world’s most well-known and successful Irish whiskeys, sold two million cases of Jameson during a six-month period – another first.
"Jameson has been driving the growth of the Irish whiskey category for the past 30 years, and as these results show, it continues to thrive, and we are incredibly proud of this growth,” McQuaid added.
Markets Breakdown
Overall, Irish Distillers announced strong growth across its vast portfolio in the first half of the year.
The drinks giant saw a 34% increase in Germany during the period and Russia experienced a 14% rise in the first half of the year, with impressive growth also experienced in Canada (+13%), South Africa (+12%) and the UK (+10%).
Key emerging markets for Jameson experienced 37%growth, buoyed by markets like Nigeria (+185%), China (+76%) and India (+47%).
Global travel retail also continues to thrive (+7%), in part due to the successful launch of Jameson Triple Triple in July 2019. Consumers continue to appreciate the super-premium range, as seen by the growth of Jameson Black Barrel (+26%).
“Growth isn’t just confined to Jameson, there has been strong growth across our portfolio of whiskeys in the first half of the year, including the single pot still category, led by Redbreast (+24%), with growth in the US (+27%), and the UK and France also performing well," said McQuaid.
'Other Highlights'
Speaking of the Method and Madness McQuid said that the range experienced very strong year to date growth (+81%) with the UK (+57%) and Ireland (+55%) both performing well.
"The range has truly piqued the interest of spirits drinkers throughout the world, reflecting the increasing appetite for innovation in the category, and with the first liquid from our Micro Distillery having matured in 2019, this range will continue to grow in the years to come," he said.
“Our brand homes in Bow Street in Dublin and Midleton in Cork continue to thrive, with visitor numbers reaching almost half a million in 2019."
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click sign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
