Carlsberg Britvic has released its 2025 Soft Drinks report, along with a seven step guide to help retailers drive soft drinks sales growth worth £225m, which equates roughly to £5k per store.
Soft drinks have been a key growth driver for convenience and the wider grocery channel in recent years, reported Carlsberg Britvic’s Soft Drinks Review 2025. They’re bought on almost one in four (23.4%) shopping trips in convenience stores and responsible for £5.3bn in sales.
But as shopper preferences evolve and a new generation of consumers comes to the fore, retailers need a solid plan to continue to unlock additional opportunities for growth, stated the firm.
One of the key areas for growth highlighted within Carlsberg Britvic’s Soft Drinks Review 2025 is energy drinks. Glucose, sport and stimulant drinks rank as the biggest soft drinks sector for UK convenience retailers, but only 4.1% of convenience shoppers currently buy energy drinks versus the 15.3% who buy soft drinks in general.
In addition to stocking the big brands within the energy category, the firm encouraged retailers to broaden the category’s appeal by ensuring that it catered for consumers favouring natural energy drinks and functional drinks, such as Purdey’s Natural Energy, Jimmy’s Iced Coffee and Plenish energy shots. The company advised retailers to unlock further growth by following its seven step guide.
Carlsberg Britvic’s seven steps to success for retailers:
Step 1: Fuel further
Retailers should ensure their ranging is on point in terms of variety when it comes to energy drinks. Make sure iced coffee lines are prominently displayed to leverage growing demand for drinks that fuel and provide a treat. The addition of juice and shots to breakfast ranges can also drive additional growth across different occasions.
Step 2: Make meals matter
Last year, soft drinks featured in only 28.6% of meals eaten in the UK and, for those aged under 25, 27.7% of meals didn’t include any kind of drink whatsoever. Retailers can address this by pairing products such as Jimmy’s Iced Coffee in promotions on breakfast items or Plenish Health Shots with hot coffee.
Step 3: Take over treat times
Soft drinks play a crucial role in satisfying shoppers’ cravings, with 26.4% of treat missions resulting in in the sale of soft drinks. That makes soft drinks the second most bought treat items after confectionery. While it’s vital to stock up on the classics – such as Pepsi MAX, 7UP and Tango Orange – retailers should also introduce new limited-edition flavours to pique shoppers’ interest.
Step 4: Opportunities for impulsive socialising
Inhome socialising occasions hit 17bn last year as 37% of people reported going out to eat and drink less in response to economic pressures. This presents opportunities for convenience retailers that offer the right drinks at the right price for people who are socialising at home.
Step 5: Add value to hydration
A new generation is reshaping the soft drinks market: Generation Z. Nearly a third (31%) of all Gen Z drinks occasions feature tap water, bottled water or flavoured hydration drinks like ice tea, compared to a UK average of 24%. Retailers can encourage younger consumers looking for hydration to trade up with drinks like Aqua Libra’s range of pure filtered still, sparkling and flavoured waters, and Lipton Ice Tea and new Lipton Kombuchas.
Step 6: Push permissible choices
Low-calorie soft drinks have grown at 5.5% in value over the past year, outperforming full sugar products which inched up by 3%. That’s why it’s crucial that convenience retailers are well-stocked with sugar-free classics like Pepsi MAX, Tango Sugar Free and 7UP Zero Sugar in a variety of formats and with a wide range of flavour alternatives such as the new 7UP Pink Lemonade and Pepsi zero sugar Strawberries ‘N’ Cream and Cream Soda.
Step 7: Recruit with healthy heroes
Research shows that 69% of Brits say they’re trying to live healthier lifestyles, with products featuring added benefits playing a key role in this. Retailers can capitalise on this trend by pairing functional health drinks with healthy snacks and meals at different times of the day. Kombucha is an opportunity ripe for the taking. Sales have grown by 33% in convenience over the past year and they are poised for further growth following the March launch of the Lipton Kombucha range, which brings a mainstream, recognised brand to the category.
