Lit Review

726 Words2 Pages

Craft beer sales saw significant growth between the years of 2009-2012 and they are expected to continue the upward trend. Interestingly, the economic downturn did not seem to affect the craft beer market despite the higher price of craft beer over mass-marketed domestic beer. In fact, craft beer is experiencing growth in sales that other beer categories are not. (Clarke, 2012; Pierre, 2013) This growth has been attributed primarily to millennials. Millennials (born between 1981- 1995) have been described as conscious of affordability and quality in their product choices but also seek to express themselves through their choices. (Rigik, 2012) According to the Brewer’s Association, 46% of new craft beer drinkers are millenials (Clarke, 2012). The craft beer market is primarily composed of the middle class beer consumer that appreciates a fine tasting brew and is willing to pay a little more for it. Craft beer consumers are typically male, white and in the 25-45 age group (Clarke, 2012; Pierre, 2013). Further demographic data suggests that the craft beer consumer is also likely to be college educated and to earn an income of $50,000 or more per year (Clarke, 2012). 80% of craft beer is drunk by white consumers, more than half of which are in the 21 -44 age group (Clarke, 2012; Pierre, 2013). While it would be understandable to concentrate marketing efforts on the white, male, and middle class consumer, there is definitely potential to expand into other demographics. Marketing professionals could expand the craft beer market by appealing to the Latino beer consumer. Many major corporations such as Nissan, McDonald’s, and Wal-Mart are marketing to the Latino market as they can see that the profit potential is vast (Rigik, 2012). I... ... middle of paper ... ...esome Beer Drinker Looks Like | InTheCapital. Retrieved from http://inthecapital.streetwise.co/2013/03/27/dissecting-the-craft-beer-consumer-a-look-at-what-an-awesome-beer-drinker-looks-like/ Rigik, E. (2012, May). Hispanics, millennials reshaping the retail market. Convenience Store Decisions, 23(5), 16. Sester, C., Dacremont, C., Deroy, O., & Valentin, D. (2013). Investigating consumers' representations of beers through a free association task: a comparison between packaging and blind conditions. Food Quality and Preference, 28(2), 475-483. Ueltschy, L., & Krampf, R. (1997). The influence of acculturation on advertising effectiveness to the Hispanic market. Journal of Applied Business Reseach, 13(2), 87-101. Webster, C. (1991). Attitudes towards marketing practices: the effects of ethnic identification. The Journal of Applied Business Research, 7(2), 107-116.

Open Document