Pick n Pay sold over 20 million bottles of wine in 2021
Pick n Pay sold over 20 million bottles of wine in 2021 and looks to exceed that figure this year as it continues to form strong partnerships with the local wine industry and grow its exclusively produced wine collection.
In December 2020, Pick n Pay pledged its commitment to support the local wine industry after prolonged restrictions on trade and exports saw the industry suffering huge financial losses and unsold batches.
By working with wine farms to sell excess volumes accumulated during the lockdowns, Pick n Pay increased its 750ml bottle range by 10% in 2021. This was across all price points and included red, white and sparkling wine styles.
Pick n Pay also leveraged its successful online platforms to promote local wines last year and sold nearly 50% more wines online in 2021 when compared to the previous year. PnP asap! doubled the number of wine bottles it delivered last year thanks to its growing network.
“The local wine industry is a huge job creator and exporter for the country and isn’t nearly as celebrated here as it is globally. We believed that Pick n Pay– as a business that welcomes everyone – can promote wines across the board from top-of-the-range wines, to less premium, but equally good, wines,” says Gavin Ievers, head of liquor at Pick n Pay.
Pick n Pay aimed to sell 25-million bottles of wine during 2021, and believes it would have reached this target had it not been for further alcohol bans during lockdown level 4 spanning several weeks and disruptions to trade caused by the riots in July.
Levers says that Pick n Pay’s commitment to support the local industry saw the retailer partnering with local wineries and distributors to launch over 30 once-off or exclusive ranges for customers. “Many producers had uncontracted wine after prolonged periods of being unable to sell. These partnerships meant we could provide a market for these farms while providing our customers with new, remarkable wines.”
“This provided an opportunity to stock Malbec for the first time at Pick n Pay,” says Ievers.
He adds, “We got to partner with some wineries making a difference. We now stock wines by Great Heart whose winery staff share ownership in the business. This venture improves the livelihoods of those who work for the company, as well as their families.”
The retailer is also collaborating with wine producers to create new ranges of wine, exclusively for Pick n Pay customers.
“We’ve just launched our third exclusive wine range called The Masterpiece. Produced by Bellingham Wines, it consists of three wines and bears the artwork of two local artists on the label. The Jacques Steytler range launched last year and is a special collaboration between Pick n Pay, fourth-generation winemaker Danie Steytler and industry entrepreneur Jacques Steenkamp. Thanks to its great price point starting at R65, it continues to grow in popularity amongst customers.”
Levers says these exclusive wine collaborations provide an opportunity for an existing wine brand to forecast to grow their volume.
Levers is optimistic they’ll reach their target of selling 25-million bottles of wine this year. “We have more innovative partnerships in the pipeline. We are also very excited to host our wine events again this year and will host five regional food and wine festivals across the country. This is a great platform to promote local wines to both locals and tourists.”
Supplied by: Pick n Pay.
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