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. Many consumers remain ready to pay extra for a higher quality drink, and novelty is an important factor too, with around half likely to try new or different drinks over the festive season.³

Why not add J2O Glitterberry to your festive drinks menu, offering novelty and flavour excitement!

Moderation doesn’t mean complete removal of alcohol, it’s about balancing indulgence with mindful choices especially with longer serves.

Long alcoholic drinks achieved a year-on-year sales uplift of 2.8% in December 2024⁴ so with a large proportion of festive drinkers chasing both value and less alcohol in longer serves, try elevate your offerings by adding London Essence Crafted Sodas and tonics to your menu.

Serving mocktails can really dial things up as consumers want the premium taste and experience but without the alcohol.⁵ This year J2O have announced a new flavour, Tropical Punch, to add to their existing ready-to-drink Mocktails offering flavour and flair without the alcohol or hassle for your bar staff.

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

During the festive period last year, soft drinks overall delivered £4.6bn in value sales in licensed venues for 2024, with Cola as the leading contributor.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.