Off-premise dollar sales of beer continued to accelerate during the week ending May 3, as beer category sales increased 32.3%, to $952.3 million, during the one-week period, according to data from market research firm IRI shared by Bump Williams Consulting (BWC).

After consecutive weeks of consumers stocking up on alcoholic beverages at off-premise retailers in mid-March due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the first signs of a slowdown began to show during the week ending March 28, according to market research firm Nielsen.

Total beer dollar sales in 2019 increased to $37.2 billion in U.S. off-premise retailers, according to market research firm IRI. The Chicago-based market research firm, which tracks category-wide sales at major off-premise retailers, reported a 5.2% increase in beer dollar sales, and a 2.3% increase in volume sales at multi-outlet and convenience (MULC) stores (grocery, drug, club, dollar, mass-merchandiser and military) through December 29.

With just one month left in 2019, off-premise beer dollar and volume sales appear poised to finish in the black. Through the first 11 months of 2019, off-premise beer category dollar sales in multi-outlet and convenience stores tracked by market research firm IRI are up 5.2%, to nearly $34.5 billion, while volume sales are up 2.3%. The largest dollar sales growth in 2019 thus far has come from flavored malt beverages, including hard seltzers.

The key summer selling season ended on a high note for the beer category, as dollar sales of beer, cider and FMBs increased 4.4% in off-premise retailers during the Labor Day holiday week (ending August 31) compared to the same time last year, market research firm Nielsen reported.

Year-to-date beer category dollar sales are up 3.5 percent, to nearly $19.5 billion, in off-premise retailers tracked by market research firm IRI. According to the Chicago-based firm, three segments — imports (+5.9), flavored malt beverages (+27.7 percent) and domestic super premiums (+12.6 percent) — have achieved nine-figure sales growth through July 14 in its multi-outlet and convenience store universe. In fact, dollar sales of FMBs, including popular hard seltzers, have topped $1.9 billion so far this year.

A majority of Americans say beer is their alcoholic beverage of choice during the July 4 holiday, according to a survey commissioned by national trade group the Beer Institute (BI). The poll — conducted by Quadrant Strategies between June 21-25 — asked 1,000 legal-drinking-age adults which alcoholic beverage they’d be consuming or serving during Independence Day. Beer was the answer for 75 percent of the respondents.

Beer volume sales got off to a strong start during the first four weeks of 2019, growing 3.7 percent compared to last year, according to market research firm IRI. The Chicago-based retail data provider, which tracks sales at major off-premise retail chains, last week reported that year-to-date off-premise dollar sales for beer at multi-outlet and convenience (MULC) stores eclipsed $2.3 billion (+6.4 percent) during the period ending January 27.

Total U.S. beer dollar sales grew to more than $35 billion in 2018, according to retail data provider IRI. The Chicago-based market research firm, which tracks category-wide sales at major off-premise retailers, reported a 1.8 percent increase in beer dollar sales, despite a 0.3 percent decline in volume sales at multi-outlet and convenience (MULC) stores (grocery, drug, club, dollar, mass-merchandiser and military) through December 30.

Off-premise retail beer sales in the U.S. eclipsed $32 billion through December 2, according to market research firm IRI. The Chicago-based group, which tracks sales at multi-outlet and convenience stores, recently reported that dollar sales of beer were up 1.7 percent year-to-date.

Shipments of domestically brewed beer are down about 2.9 percent, according to the Beer Institute, but year-to-date volume sales at off-premise retailers are still basically flat. According to the latest data from market research firm IRI, volume sales at multi-outlet and convenience stores were down 0.3 percent year-to-date through the period ending November 4.

Cincinnati’s Fifty West Brewing Company has quickly established itself as brand to watch. The Ohio-based craft brewery, which opened its doors in 2012, topped market research firm IRI’s list of new vendors in supermarkets, with off-premise dollar sales of nearly $214,000, for the 27 weeks ending July 8, IRI director of client insights Patrick Livingston shared during last month’s Brewers Association Power Hour.

Year-to-Date volume sales of beer are basically flat, according to market research firm IRI Worldwide, which tracks scan data at major off-premise retailers throughout the U.S. In its latest monthly report, the firm also said off-premise retail volume sales of craft beer had grown 1.4 percent year-to-date through the period ending August 12.

Midway through 2018, off-premise volume sales of craft beer across a variety of large-scale retail stores are up just 1.7 percent, according to market research firm IRI Worldwide. While craft beer dollar sales at grocery, club, drug, dollar, mass merchandiser and convenience stores were just shy of $2 billion through June 17, up 2.9 percent year-to-date, the most recent trends point to a slowdown as brewing companies head into an important summer season.