Labor Day: Some 60% of consumers plan to celebrate

60% of consumers plan to celebrate this year, down from 75% in 2022 

55% of celebrants plan to purchase alcohol for the holiday with the top options being beer (74%), hard seltzers (34%) and wine (33%)

61% of celebrants plan to grill for Labor Day 2023 (the same as 2022), but other celebrations are shifting away from attending or hosting a gathering/party (41% in 2023 vs. 53% in 2022) to plans such as cooking/baking (26% vs. 20%), recreational activities (21% vs 12%), traveling (19% vs. 13%), and watching fireworks (16% vs 10%)

89% of Labor Day celebrants intend to buy food, including hamburgers (83%), hot dogs (67%), chicken (60%), and steak (41%)

42% of consumers expect rising prices to impact their Labor Day plans, and 86% of consumers anticipate taking money-saving measures for the holiday, including buying items on sale (54%), preparing more budget-friendly meals (35%), using more coupons (32%), switching to store brands (23%), and visiting dollar or discount stores (20%)

Summer 2023 saw beer grow sales by 11.7% and share by 1.6 points compared to summer 2022. Beer brands that grew summer share include Miller ( 2.1 points), Coors ( 2.1 points) and Modelo ( 1.2 points). Bud Light declined by 3.2 points

Ready-to-drink alcoholic beverages, which includes hard cider, hard seltzers, ready-to-drink cocktails, and flavored malt beverages, saw sales increase by 1.6% this summer compared to 2022. Nutrl ( 195.3%), Beatbox Beverages ( 129.5%) and Absolut ( 82%) saw the largest growth in pure sales, while brands such as High Noon ( 4 points), Twisted Tea ( 2.1 points) and White Claw ( 1.1 points) gained the most share within the category