Women’s beers show potential

Brewers are missing out on sales because they aren’t targeting women, according to Springhead Brewery’s sales and marketing director Steve Reynolds.

“There’s a real opportunity for women to try beer, if only they knew they liked it,” he said. “The market needs de-mystifying.” He said that a lack of communication on product packaging was holding back the market. “There are a lot of beers currently brewed, which women would like, but they aren’t being talked to by manufacturers - they’re being ignored. The consumer is having to fight their way through.”

Reynolds believed beer labels should be more like wine, telling you where the product was made and what type of beer it was. He added that how beers were positioned in store could make a big difference to their ability to appeal to female shoppers. “Just a simple separation of dark, pale and bitters in the retailer could help give women a clearer indication of what’s on offer.”

He claimed that there was a real chance for both major and micro brewers to benefit because, unlike other categories, the top 20 lines of bottled beer available in retailers account for just 15% of sales.

He said there was also potential for women’s beers to do well in pubs: “Some firms might think it’s rather dangerous for a beer brand to target women as it cancels out 75% of drinkers. But this could be set to change as women may start to populate pubs now that the smoking ban has started,” he said.