Buying High End Wine and Premium Water is being driven by a familiar trend. Women today are less likely to be influenced by men and more likely to influence men. – Jessica Altieri
I was honored to speak at the Fine Water Summit in Stockholm, Sweden this past week and present trends for the high end wine and fine water markets. This was the 6th Fine Water Summit hosted by mineral water pioneer Michael Mascha. Jessica Altieri presented an overview on “Liquid Luxury, Critical Trends in the premium water and wine markets for 2019.
Here are some of the highlights from the presentation.
Men are increasingly participating in activities and making purchases traditionally seen as feminine.
Men’s openness enables even greater creativity, expanding the audience for more “feminine” designs
Creativity as a brand value, expressed through design or story, will make a water even more compelling.
More than any other generation, millennials value creativity, not only as a means of self-expression but as a tool to navigate the constantly changing world around them.
Highlighting international provenance is always a good idea.
The growing international influence in the U.S. combined with a high degree of openness has led Millennials to embrace products and experiences from around the world.
The brand’s backstory will be critical to consumers looking for the why.
The demand for luxury is growing, but the defining traits are evolving: from merely owning the product to the experience of using it; from simply knowing what to buy to knowing why to buy it.
Consumer willingness to learn enables categories like water to evolve from generic to branded to luxury
“Consumers are more aware than ever of the health benefits of staying hydrated… Drinking more water is one of the key lifestyle changes they’ve made to improve their health.” –Datamonitor
Even with a luxury positioning, hydration as a functional benefit will add value
Consumers continue to trade up in categories where they feel an emotional attachment –especially beverages -and paying for it by trading down in categories with low emotional engagement.
Water increasingly shows opportunities for emotional engagement by tapping into one or more trends
Significant profits from rising premium waters trend are being missed.
The value consumers place on health and well-being continues to grow, both in terms of the types of
products they buy and healthier habits overall.Wine’s credentials as a healthier drink will be critical moving forward
The brand’s backstory will be critical to consumers looking for the why.
It’s about much more than travel. It’s about tapping into an “explorer mindset,” validating Proust’s quote
that “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.” Wine is in a good position to help millennials tap into their inner explorer.Boomers remain more open to change at this life-stage than any previous generations. Men, in particular,
have become more focused on relationships as they’ve aged.Men may see wine, more so than beer or liquor, as something they can share with women.
Stay in touch with Jessica Altieri, Fine Water and Wine Expert for current trends in the luxury lifestyle market and fine water and high end wine market.