Britvic has unveiled its new category vision for the soft drinks sector, entitled Drink Differently.

The company believes it can tap into a £2.6bn sales opportunity over the next five years by ensuring soft drinks remain relevant to all consumers and all occasions, across all channels.

With soft drinks worth £2.1bn to the convenience sector alone (IRI, December 2017), Britvic is looking to help independent retailers boost category sales by following key market trends.

Trystan Farnworth, commercial director of convenience & impulse at Britvic, said: “There’s a really positive story to tell for soft drinks in convenience at the moment. The results showcased in this year’s review show that the category is in good health. Britvic are well placed to navigate through the Soft Drinks Industry Levy and we’d encourage all convenience retailers to look upon the levy with a view of maximising the opportunity to provide healthier choices, rather than minimising the impact.

“It’s also interesting to see the opportunities that no sugar cola and Generation Z shoppers are bringing to soft drinks. We also believe that there is plenty of potential for soft drinks category growth to continue, providing that manufacturers and retailers remain agile and can successfully adapt to meet the ever-evolving demands of consumers. At Britvic, we are committed to doing just that and providing the industry with innovative soft drinks, as well as supporting retailers and customers with category advice and industry insight to maximise all soft drinks missions, ensuring that we work together to continue to drive the category growth even further in the future.”

Soft drinks featured in 20% of all convenience shopping baskets in the last year, making it the number one category purchased for the fourth year in a row. (HIM CTP 2017)

John Campbell, Commercial Operations Director at Britvic, added: “The consumer landscape and the way people live their lives is fundamentally changing and now is the time for the category to evolve. Soft drinks must adapt in order to maintain, but also grow their relevancy amongst consumers. At Britvic, we want to share our insights with customers and work together to identify new opportunities to grow the category, all by getting the nation to Drink Differently.”