business & marketing
wi n e a voi d a n ce
GenY participants were willing to learn more about wine (e.g. differentiating flavours across categories, grapes, cheap and expensive wines and foodwine pairings). This indicates that education might play a role in creating new consumers, particularly when they were a little older. They also believed that expensive wine was of a better quality, and tasted better; this bodes well for the future as the wine industry attempts to gravitate consumers toward higher priced Australian wines (currently, consumers tend to purchase international wines in higher price brackets before an Australian alternative). While this age group does indicate that wine consumption is more of a future prospect, and not exactly relevant to their age group due to current cultural and social perceptions, one possible way of circumventing this attitude may be through the inclusion of media campaigns featuring younger celebrities or media personalities. There is no doubt that this would be done with due respect to healthy drinking patterns. Products that may address other concerns of GenY include more varieties of reduced alcohol wine, as well as wine cocktails such as wine spritzers (e.g. wine topped with soda water). Although this may not be viewed as a wholly wine beverage, it could be a possible transition/introduction to wine in non-consumers. Generation X This group associated wine with sophistication and classiness (snobbish) which they believed was ‘not them’. Other alcohol suited their personality more such as beer (for men) and spirits (for men and women).They were not, however, interested in having the image of wine changed to be more casual. They liked the idea of being able to use wine to show their sophistication at a certain place or situation such as a formal or corporate event. On the flip side, this group also associated wine with food, particularly steak and pasta, at home or a restaurant. The food association no longer included the ‘snobbishness’ perception. Overall, it appears that the sophistication of wine is associated with people consuming it at formal events, but this image is lost when food is consumed sitting down at a table with friends and family. Reasons given as to why this age group avoid wine include: the effects wine has on them such as causing hangovers more so than other beverages; causing headaches due to the preservatives and ‘sulfites’, and making them feeling sleepy and lethargic, which is undesirable at the start of a night out. People discussed how they enjoyed being able to ‘guzzle down’ a beer or mixer (e.g. a gin and tonic) when
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thirsty or at a pub/bar, but not being able to do this with a wine. After a glass or two of wine the alcohol effects occur and then they cannot consume any more, which makes it less social at a bar or pub; but okay with dinner. The ‘inconvenience’ of wine also came through in this group. They felt that wine must be drank from a glass and that holding a glass at a club or bar is awkward. Also, the likelihood of the glass breaking if dropped is higher for a wine glass than a bottle. When purchasing wine there is confusion over what to buy. The vast numbers of wines available, the different types and brands caused a lot of confusion. In this case, people reported sticking to what they know or trying something recommended. Others said they were swayed by an attractive bottle or label and how many medals the wine had won, whereas others reported just buying something for $10. Perhaps the main reason this group avoided wine was due to the taste and texture. The taste of wine was compared with medicine and being syrupy (red wine); the ‘aftertaste’ was also mentioned as being undesirable. For Generation X, greater knowledge of how wines can complement food would encourage them to be more confident in purchasing wine. Baby Boomers The Baby Boomers were open minded about wine and tended to respond positively when asked if they would consume wine if their reasons for avoiding it were removed. The main reasons they reported avoiding wine were the taste, confusion about making a choice and the way it made them feel. Despite this, they were open to the idea of trying wine, though were concerned about the wastage associated with buying a bottle that they did not like. When pressed, they seemed less concerned about the money (though this was an issue for some) and more concerned about the wasted wine that would be thrown out. The Baby Boomers were excited by the prospect of being able to test smaller sample sizes, in particular being able to purchase a ‘sample pack’ of different wines in small serving sizes such as 375mL. The Baby Boomers were resistant to peer pressure and would not consume wine because others were, even at a dinner party. There was concern around the level of alcohol in wine. First, Baby Boomers lamented that Australia does not have a “table wine like France and Italy do”. Instead, Australian wine was seen as being higher in alcohol. Secondly, some liked the control of adding their own mixers to alcohol to control the dose, or consuming beer where the alcoholic dose was clear. The control theme amongst this group meant that W i n e & V i t i c ult ur e Jo ur na l SEPTEMBER/O C TO BER 2013
even if a lower-alcohol wine was offered, they would still be concerned about how their consumption related to standard drinks. Some Baby Boomers found that wine made them sleepy or caused allergic-like reactions even at low doses; they purported that organic wine reduced the ill effects because it did not contain the preservatives that normal wine does and that they were willing to pay more for organic wine. A lower alcohol level was seen as a solution to the sleepy factor. A product offering would need to take all of these factors into account, not just a lower alcohol level. The Baby Boomers became excited at the prospect of being able to trial wine and did not seem to understand the opportunities available to them at cellar door. It is likely that this kind of direct experience could influence this group to become wine drinkers, more so than education around wine choice, as the Baby Boomers were mistrusting of recommendations from others (other than trusted friends) on the basis that salespeople would recommend wine that was in their interests rather than suitable, and wine critic suggestions did not accord with their preferences. The Baby Boomers did see some limitations to how they would use wine, even if their concerns were addressed, specifically, they thought wine was to be consumed in the presence of others, ideally with food and that wine was ‘complicated’ and not something that you would drink casually. They also thought that Australian culture, the hot climate and drinking to satisfy a thirst was not consistent with the texture of wine. Conclusions This study used focus groups and a qualitative methodology to develop major themes that describe why three generational cohorts avoid drinking wine. The results can be used by business owners to guide decisions on how to attract new customers that are unlikely to cannibalise an existing customer base. On balance, the Baby Boomers seemed more open to adopting wine than the other generational cohorts, though the importance of the youngest group, as future wine drinkers, should not be underestimated. We have suggested several potential new product offerings and these, along with others, will be tested in a quantitative phase of the study to be completed early in 2014. Reference Ritchie, C. (2007) Beyond drinking: The role of wine in the life of the UK consumer. International Journal of WVJ Consumer Studies 31:534-540. V28N5