Three out of five whisky cases sold globally in 2018 were made in India, as per reports. Moreover, Officer's Choice is the highest selling whisky brand in the world with sales of 34 million cases globally. Sale of whisky that had seen a dip due to the temporary ban on sales in highways has bounced back. In fact it is the strongest in four years with a growth of 11 per cent, according to data of the International Wine and Spirits Research (IWSR).
In between 2014 and 2018, sales of Indian whisky had expanded to over 50 per cent, which is three times the growth rate for the global liquor market.
Additionally, with 176 million cases, one in every five spirits across categories like whisky, vodka, gin, rum and brandy consumed globally were a brand made in India, as per IWSR data. IWSR ranked all brands that sell over one million cases annually.
Indian-Made Foreign Liquor or IMFL are locally produced and adapted versions of European spirits. Brands owned by ABD, United Spirits Ltd and Pernod Ricard account for 90 per cent of the overall Indian whisky segment, as mentioned in a report in The Economic Times.
ABD's Officer's Choice contributes 90 per cent of its total sales. The daily mentioned that the company is looking to focus on the Sterling Reserve range of premium whiskies that saw sales of 1.2 million cases in its launch year of 2018.
The ban on sale of whiskies near state and highways in 2017 led to the closure of about a third or 30,000 of the country's liquor vends. The court eventually eased the conditions.
Even so, the premium brands showed no signs of slowdown. Additionally, with 20 million people reaching legal drinking age each year, the segment is doing rather well.
While multiple entry level brands have encouraging sales, companies are shifting their focus towards pricier variants.
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