Which Products Are Bought Most With Beer?

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CHICAGO -- A recent affinity index created by Anheuser-Busch (A-B) shows other alcohol drinks are the products most likely to be purchased in convenience stores when beer is in a shopper’s basket.

Using IRI c-store data for the 52-week period ending July 2, 2017, A-B rated several product types for their likelihood to be purchased with beer.

Among alcohol beverages, red wine is the most likely companion purchase with beer. In fact, the beer buyer is 6.2 times more likely to buy red wine and beer together than any other item, according to the index. In snacks, appetizers show the highest affinity at 2.4 times more likely. Nonalcohol and sweets show a relatively low affinity, but strongest among them are root beer and cream soda at 1.1 times.

“The thing to ask yourself is: How do I merchandise these products together?,” said David Vartanian, senior director of national category management for Anheuser-Busch, St. Louis. “How do I think about creating a blended margin that allows me to offer the best price?”

Vartanian discussed the affinity study results during CSP’s2017 Cold Vault Forum held in Chicago from Sept. 25-27.

Here are the strongest affinities across the three categories studied:

Other data shared by Vartanian shows the average total basket size in convenience stores when it includes beer is $20.93, more than three times the average $6.85 when it doesn’t have beer, according to InfoScout data. Also, 14 brands account for 80% of beer sales in c-stores. And the top 10 best-selling beer SKUs in convenience stores, according to IRI, are:

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