Experts believe 'sober-curious' lifestyle driving alcohol sales down

A new Statistics Canada survey has found Canadians are buying less booze – leading sales to drop for the first time in a decade.

Fiona Hepher believes the decrease is coming from something she calls a “sober-curious” lifestyle.

“We’re looking at quite a big cultural pivot right now, the social narrative around alcohol is really changing,” said Hepher.

She is the co-founder and creative director of Sansorium, a business selling non-alcoholic spirits to customers looking for the taste of booze without the buzz.

The drop in alcohol sales is driven by healthier lifestyle choices, she believes.

“Over the last number of years our consciousness around wellbeing has skyrocketed. We care more about ourselves than ever before.”

According to the survey, the volume of alcohol sales declined to an equivalent of 9.5 standard alcoholic beverages per week per legal drinking age Canadian.

According to the Canadian Cancer Society, drinking alcohol increases your chances of getting nine different types of cancer, while the benefits of abstaining are notable.

“(They include) increased energy, better concentration, sleeping better and just the sense of achievement for not feeling like you need a drink,” said Elizabeth Holmes, the society’s senior manager of health policy.

Other experts believe increasing costs are to blame for lower purchasing trends.

"We have inflationary pressures that are now really contributing too, I think, to more intentionality to discretionary spending,” said Kathy Perrotta, vice-president of marketing at Ipsos Canada.

Ipsos Canada has been tracking a steady decline in alcohol use for more than 10 years. Perrotta said that’s due to younger generations, including Gen Z and younger Millennials, “drinking less than predecessor generations.”

Despite the decline, consumer experts don’t believe alcohol will be axed out of society any time soon.

"There's no indication, at least from the data I see, that consumers are willing to let go of alcoholic beverages. That being said, the landscape for alcoholic beverages is changing,” said Joel Gregoire, associate food and drink director and Mintel.

"Health is part of that, calories is part of that, sugar is part of that, lower alcohol consumptions is potentially part of that,” he said.

But as sales soar for Hepher’s alcohol-free spirits, she believes change is on the horizon similar to what happened with cigarettes.

"They have warning stickers all over it and people did start to take notice and change their relationship with cigarettes and it's only a matter of time before alcohol gets that same label,” Hepher said.

Warning labels on liquor bottles is a topic that’s been front and centre after Health Canada released new guidelines for alcohol consumption that saw a massive reduction.

Hepher believes it’s the first step towards a society less focused on cracking a cold one each Saturday night.