Constellation Partners With Coca-Cola To Target Premixed Cocktail Market

Constellation Brands has struck a deal with Coca-Cola to target the booming premixed cocktail category through the latter’s Fresca brand. Under the agreement, Constellation will produce, market, distribute, and launch Fresca Mixed, a new line of spirit-based, ready-to-drink cocktails.

Fresca is currently the fastest growing soft drink trademark in the Coca-Cola Company’s U.S. portfolio and is used as a cocktail mixer, a soft drink, and a zero-calorie, zero-sugar sparkling soda water. Constellation’s Fresca Mixed premixed cocktails are expected to roll out this year. The alliance furthers a trend of blurring lines across the drinks business, in which Molson Coors is partnered with Coca-Cola on the Topo Chico hard seltzer brand, Boston Beer has aligned with PepsiCo to produce Hard Mtn Dew, and Beam Suntory has agreed to collaborate with Boston Beer on the Truly and Sauza brands.

In addition to announcing the Coke deal, Constellation posted sales up 1% to $6.7 billion for the nine months through November, with organic growth running ahead of that pace. The drinks giant’s beer division’s net sales grew 4% to $1.75 billion in the company’s fiscal third quarter, boosted by 13% and 11% growth from Modelo Especial and Corona Extra, respectively.

On the wine and spirits side, organic growth for the third quarter registered 3% to $568 million, led by The Prisoner, Kim Crawford, and Meiomi. The latter has proven especially dynamic in the 3-tier e-commerce tier. Nearly 10% of Meiomi’s sales are now generated in the 3-tier e-commerce channel, Constellation says, the highest level among leading U.S. wine brands in IRI-measured e-commerce channels.

For its full fiscal year ending in February, Constellation is now targeting organic net sales growth of 4%-6% for the wine and spirits division, with its beer unit sales expected to increase 8%-10%.—Daniel Marsteller

Tagged : Coca-Cola, Constellation Brands, Fresca, Meiomi

GET YOUR FIRST LOOK AT 2021 DATA AND 2022 PROJECTIONS FOR THE WINE AND SPIRITS INDUSTRIES. ORDER YOUR 2022 IMPACT DATABANK REPORTS. CLICK HERE.