Wow with low and no this Christmas

‘Limited editions’ or seasonal specials prove popular over the Christmas or Winter season, providing guests with something different or special. With indulgent, interesting, unique and exotic being key motivators for guest choice^[3], why not experiment with flavours and garnishes using cherry, dried fruit, cranberry, ginger, mixed spice and peppermint to give your offerings a festive feel.

To elevate your offerings, try adding London Essence Crafted Sodas and tonics to your menu.

Serving cocktails – alcoholic or non-alcoholic – can really dial things up. Last year, 64% of people said they expect the venues they visit to give them experiences they cannot replicate at home.^[4] Note also that 37% of cocktail drinkers say they always or nearly always post pictures of their drinks on social media. That means the drinks you serve need to look great, as well as taste great - two boxes a J2O Mocktail can tick.

Juice drinks also proved a popular choice last Christmas, growing in volume and also share of softs. They were also ranked the second favourite choice after carbonated softs when looking for non alcoholic alternatives.^[5]

The J2O range – which includes Spritz and Mocktails as well as the core Fruit Blends range - offer plenty of opportunity for festive juice combinations. You can find recipes for our J2O Winter Woo Woo and Santa's Sunrise below.

Cola is a core staple in licensed and it also commands the largest share of soft drinks, chosen for its ‘Taste’ and ‘Refreshment’, along with its alcohol mixing credentials.^[6]
Despite the back drop of a cost of living crisis in 2023, Cola gained share last Christmas with growth driven from guests buying more frequently and buying more when they did buy.^[7]

To elevate your offerings, try enhancing Pepsi MAX® with Mathieu Teisseire flavour syrups this Christmas.

Of course, all this could be for nothing if your guests aren’t made aware of what’s on offer. Ensuring staff are properly trained and actively offer people chances to upgrade their drinks is crucial, as is clearly signposting what’s on offer behind the bar. Make things easier for parents by setting kids drinks apart and put together specific menus for younger guests.

Developing attractive menus for your low and no alcohol and premium soft drinks can deliver big rewards. Research shows that foodservice operators can elevate soft drinks spend by an average of 17%, simply by providing a drinks menu^[8]. Ensuring they’re attractive and easy to read is also important, given that most guests spend less than two minutes looking at menus.