With the explosion of new alcohol-based products in recent years and the limited space convenience stores are faced with, knowing exactly what to sell and when is key to maximizing the sales of alcohol in your operation.

In Tuesday’s Education Session “Strategies for Boosting Your Alcohol Category Performance,” Danny Brager, beverage alcohol industry fact-based consultant for Chicago-based 3 Tier Beverages, said alcohol sales in convenience stores account for about $30 billion in sales each year, with beer making up the majority of the category.

But newer products such as ready-to-drink, pre-mixed cocktails, wine- and malt-based spirit products and single-serve beverages are making inroads in the alcohol category. Michelle Abdollah, category manager of beverage alcohol at Extramile Convenience Stores LLC, said the ready-to-drink sector, in particular, is having a moment.

“I think we are in a very interesting time right now, a very exciting time,” she said. “We have brands such as Fireball and Monaco—these are known brands in the spirit category that have traditionally resonated with our customers and have already built that awareness—and they are bringing in malt-based, wine-based RTDs, and this is allowing a whole new gate to open for convenience where sites that don’t have the license for liquor can now sell wine-based and malt-based items.”

The hurdle for convenience stores, Brager said, is in figuring out which of these new products to make room for in an already limited space.

“You should certainly be considering both the size of different brands as well as the growth, and if you can find brands that are large and growing, that’s kind of the goal at the end of the treasure hunt,” he said.

Abdollah said the key to making these decisions regardless of the product is to be as data-oriented as possible, especially when dealing with your suppliers.

“I think the No. 1 thing when (suppliers) are looking at discussing a new item with me is getting a look at the data and being aware of the dollar percentage share that it plays within the total category,” she said. “While trends are very important, suppliers sometimes have somewhat of a tunnel vision in terms of trends.”

For more on the current trends in pack beverages, check out today’s Education Session "Pack Bev Blueprint: Optimizing Space, Trends, Pricing, and Promotions" at 8 a.m. in pavilion 1/2.