Category Captain: Alcoholic Beverages: Beer: Anheuser-Busch

Anheuser-Busch Inbev (A-B) performed a quantitative fact-based segmentation of the alcohol category and consumer demand to identify unique consumer groups and need states. Each segment has different needs, interests and brand profiles for their choices in the beer category. By aligning the brands with the key segments, need states and palates, A-B can capture profitable demand for retailers. To help retailers achieve sustainable profitable growth, A-B spotlighted strategic brands that profitably fulfill the needs of the growth segments, allocating resources accordingly to ensure disciplined execution.

The extensive review uncovered the recent emergence of a unique beer palate seeking a more complex, flavorful and sophisticated sweeter-tasting beer. A-B pinpointed opportunities for retail partners to grow beer through marketing and innovation efforts to satisfy the unmet demands of consumers with these palate preferences.

The high-end craft segment is up 19.9 percent in supermarkets, with A-B’s Shock Top Belgian White delivering the highest growth for wheat beers. The new Shock Top Raspberry Wheat variety is quickly gaining momentum, ranking fifth in overall growth out of wheat beers. This positive growth is nationwide, with all eight regions displaying double-digit or higher growth for the Shock Top family. The top-10 growth accounts for the Shock Top family also reflect positive increases for the high-end craft segment, with the Shock Top family contributing 25 percent of the growth for the segment.