The Covid epidemic has changed drinking habits around the world and has contributed to the rise of no-low drinks. This new trend is causing bar owners to rethink their business and more and more are opening no-low bars.
While in the ten key markets (USA, Germany, Japan, France, ...), alcohol consumption decreased by 5% last year, the research institute ISWR reports that, on the contrary, the consumption of low-alcohol and non-alcoholic beverages has increased. According to Brandy Rand, managing director of ISWR, global consumption of low-alcohol and non-alcohol beverages is growing two to three times faster than overall alcohol consumption. In response to this new trend, more and more bars serving only cocktails and non-alcoholic drinks are opening around the world.
In the United States, which is less affected by the restrictions on closing bars and restaurants, more and more cities are setting up these new kinds of bars. This is the case in San Francisco, for example, where Joshua James, a seasoned bartender who discovered alcohol-free alternatives during the pandemic, decided to open the Ocean Beach Café. New York, Chicago and Austin are also seeing similar initiatives, and their inhabitants can now enjoy parties without moderation.
Europe is not left behind: for example, in Dublin and Berlin, the Virgin Mary Bar and Zeroliq opened at the end of the year. During this period of confinement, they offer take-away cocktails and other non-alcoholic products (wines, spirits and beers) before reopening their doors to consumers.
In France, the soft drinks distribution website Gueule de Joie opened a temporary bar in 2020 for four months in the centre of Nantes. The success of this experiment should lead to its being repeated as soon as possible. In addition, many bars are deciding to offer more and more alcohol-free alternatives on their menus. This is the case of the Shell, the cocktail bar of the Grands Boulevards Hotel in Paris and its mixologist Maxime Potfer, who has added many mocktails to his menu.
Given the rapid success of non-alcoholic beverages around the world and in France, it is likely that these alternative bars will become more common in the years to come in order to meet the demand of consumers, many of whom are turning to more sober evenings and a healthier lifestyle.