Scotty's Top 5

Every fortnight Bibendum’s Market Insight Manager James Scott compiles a list of the most interesting developments and issues from the newswires and how these could impact your business.

At the beginning of each year we also compile a series of Top 10 trends to look out for during the year ahead!

1. Inflation: Should (given a fair wind, touch wood, turn-around-touch-the-ground-bagsy-not-it!) be at 4.5% by the time of the next budget – according to the Bank of England. This would set March’s duty increase (including the 2% over rider) at around 6.5% - which [including VAT] would put 14p on a bottle of wine, 52p on a 70cl bottle of spirits and 3p on a pint.

2. Vivid: Great steps in Corporate Social Resposibility across the drinks industry!

a. The international wine sector has reached agreement on a system for calculating the industry's carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions across producing, supplying, transporting and retailing wine. The result is the Green House Gas Accounting Protocol agreed by OIV.

b.Coca Cola plan to save the Polar Bear! As the Polar Bear is predicted to be the first major species to become instinct as a result of global warming, Coca-Cola are bidding to raise $4m for the World Wildlife Fund.

3. Holidays: The “staycation” is back/still here/an entirely new concept! Delete as appropriate. This time it’s with a twist via www.campinmygarden.com. You get a choice of around 350 gardens in which to pitch your tents - 80% of which are in the UK. The World Travel Market 2011 Conference was told that, against a background of higher and higher hotel prices in the UK and a sluggish economy, such low-cost alternatives to the traditional holiday were likely to prosper. In my experience camping involves an awful lot of wine!

4. On & Off Trade blurring continues with M&S “Food on the Move” - Marks & Spencer is reported to be trialling a new food format by Baker Street station. The 600sqft store will retail hot and cold takeaway food to commuters and shoppers.

5. Chinese wine market set for rapid expansion: News? Maybe not the most shocking thing anyone has ever heard, but Chinese wine importer Summergate Fine Wines has, according to Mark Brumby, suggested at a conference in Hong Kong that the Chinese market for imported wine could be worth as much as 50m cases (of 12 x 0.75l bottles) within five years. The country currently imports around 23m cases up from around 16.5m last year, and imported wine now makes up 16% of the market.

However…Summergate warns that there has been a 'decrease in professionalism' re the product's distribution. The country now has an issue with counterfeit (i.e. locally-produced) wine passing itself off as an imported product. Sounds like “Dragon 8 Morgaux” [sic] is doing a roaring trade.

And finally…the weird and wacky world of wondrous wizard invention has led us to… Virtual shopping in railway stations!

Ok, so Tesco have already trialled something similar in South Korea, but as a ‘smart follower’ I’m comfortable with promoting www.mall.cz’s great piece of QR code driven shopping in Prague tube stations. How does it work? You use your smartphone to take pictures of posters showing groceries and they are then delivered to your home. Why is this relevant? Imagine if you could order a cool glass/bottle/wine flight of wine on your way to your dinner date/hotel stay/family gathering?!