Energy bombs have become a staple of nights out in Britain since they first arrived onto the scene in 2007 – with a third of all outlets in GB now serving ‘bombs’ – including two thirds of bars and almost half of all pubs.
And, according to recent research by food and drinks Consultancy CGA Strategy, the high energy serve is still experiencing growth: with over a third of outlets now serving bombs and rates of sale in stockists continuing to rise, up 9% year on year.
From Jägerbomb to Glitterbomb to Skittlebomb
The original and still the best selling bomb is the Jägerbomb: typically served as a shot of Jägermeister liqueur submerged in a larger glass of energy drink Red Bull. But Glitterbombs (Goldschlager and Red Bull), Skittlebombs (Cointreau and Red Bull) and many more variations on the theme now feature on bar menus nationwide, as consumer thirst for bombs continues to evolve.
Consumer research by CGA confirmed that bombs are now far more than a student phenomenon – and that bomb drinking is now firmly entrenched mainstream market behaviour. In a recent survey, CGA found that 82% of respondents, including 91% of 18-24 year olds surveyed, had ordered a bomb on at least one night out – with a fifth per cent of respondents (and almost a third of 18-24 year olds) ordering the serve in the last week.
Sociability is its strongest appeal
Why do people like to drink bombs? The CGA survey found that its sociability is its strongest appeal, with 42% buying bombs for the social experience – a proportion that rises to 47% of 35 – 44 year old bomb drinkers.
Alex Eyre, author of the CGA Mixed Drinks report in which the bombs findings are published, confirms, “Energy bombs can bring consumers of all ages and backgrounds together in a diverse range of social settings, whether on big nights out, at weddings or at the office party. In recent years we’ve seen a shift in how people use the on trade, from habitual visits to an occasion-driven model, where people visit pubs and bars with a specific objective in mind – and that objective usually has a social dimension. As a result we’re seeing a rise in popularity of serves that meet that social imperative. Shared serve cocktails are one beneficiary and bombs, which have a real social ritual attached, are another.”
About the 2013 Mixed Drink report
The 2013 Mixed Drink report findings are based on a multifaceted research programme incorporating trade surveys of a sample of 5,000 outlets; consumer research including three individual online surveys and a targeted focus group; market data drawn from CGA’s Brand Index on trade product and category performance tracker and custom analysis on data drawn from the CGA Volume Pool, which combines regular sales data from over 70,000 licensed venues.
CGA Strategy is the leading on trade consultancy with over twenty years’ experience blending best in class quantitative analytics with exceptional market understanding, to create truly actionable insight for our blue chip client base.
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