Margaritas will be the order of the day on Cinco de Mayo, according to a new study from consumer insights firm Numerator.
More than three-quarters (78%) of respondents who plan to purchase alcohol for the holiday told Numerator they will be drinking margaritas, followed by beer (51%).
Of the 5,900 people surveyed, 17% said they plan to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, which falls on Monday this year. Nearly 60% of revelers plan to buy alcohol.
Younger legal-drinking-age (LDA) consumers are more interested in buying hard seltzers and ready-to-drink (RTD) canned cocktails for their celebrations, with 45% of Gen Z respondents saying they plan to include those products on their shopping lists, compared to 23% of overall respondents.
Cinco de Mayo over-indexes with Gen Z (27% plan to celebrate) and millennials (23%) compared to other generations. The most popular plans among those planning to mark the day is going out for a meal (38%), followed by gathering with friends and family (35%), going out for drinks (33%), cooking or baking at home (25%) and grilling (25%).
Nearly all (93%) Cinco de Mayo celebrators plan to make purchases for the holiday. Food (75%) and bev-alc products (58%) are the most popular, with Gen Z respondents also planning to buy party supplies (29%) and candy (31%).
Purchases will likely be spread across a variety of retail channels. Grocery stores (47%) are in the lead, followed by liquor stores (35%), big box stores (32%), on-premise stores and related delivery services (32%) and dollar stores (18%).
Margaritas’ dominance over Cinco de Mayo plans comes as tequila gains share of on-premise spirits volume from other segments in the category.
Imported beer, the majority of which comes from Mexico, has gained share in both the off- and on-premise channels in Q1, according to Fintech data analyzed by National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA) chief economist and VP of analytics Lester Jones. Imports accounted for 23.9% (+0.8% year-over-year) of all retailer purchases in the off-premise and 24% (+0.6%) in the on-premise.
Constellation Brands – which imports Modelo, Corona, Pacifico and Victoria from Mexico – made similar gains in both channels. Constellation’s share of retailer purchases increased 0.9% in the off-premise, to 17.6% in Q1, and +0.6% in the on-premise, to 12.8%.