The qualitative study has been carried out by the think-tank BVA in five countries (France, Belgium, the United Kingdom, USA, Japan).  In each town, two 2 hour 30 minute sessions were held, each with 10 twenty- to twenty-five-year-olds participants.  The groups were made up of those who drank wine only very occasionally, both male and female, students and working young people, still living with their parents or in their own apartments.
On top of this, a quantitative study of a proportion representation of the French population was carried out on the internet sites “L’Express” and “L’Etudiant” from the 28th February to the 28th March 2007.

VINEXPO STUDY

France, Belgium, U.K., U.S.A., Japan
20 to 25 year-olds and wine
Key points from the study carried out by BVA on behalf of VINEXPO

Press contacts:

Paris - Elysabeth Ebel / Séverine Jousset - Agence Greenwich Tel: +33 1 58 05 10 70 Fax: +33 1 58 05 10 71 - Email: contact@greenwich.eu
www.greenwich.eu

Bordeaux - Anne Cusson / Mathilde Carreau Gaschereau - Vinexpo Tel: +33 5 56 56 01 69 Fax: +33 5 56 56 00 12 - Email: presse@vinexpo.com
www.vinexpo.fr

Introduction :

Far be it from us the desire to simply “coast” along, this subject seems all the more timeless than we had realised in 1996 after the first international study of “Young people and wine”.  Ten years later it seems timely, even necessary, to ask the question again.
The study had to span the globe, therefore 5 major cities were targeted in order to establish the common denominators and the differences which emerge amongst those between 20 and 25 years old in Paris, London, Tokyo, Brussels or New York.
Our domestic market will be the subject of particular scrutiny.  That is why a quantitative investigation has been conducted to assess and cross examine the points of view.
More than simply comparing the trends of the market around the world, Vinexpo wants to work in partnership with the wine and spirit businesses of the world.  This study is, once again, an expression of this desire.

Robert Beynat
Commissaire général de Vinexpo

Jean-Marie Chadronnier
Président de Vinexpo

Key points of the study

20 to 25, the age of transition. 
To be between 20 and 25 is to go through psychological and social changes, marked by the end of adolescence and a certain unconcern. One settles into adulthood and seeks an independence, new responsibility and worries. Consumption of wine is attached to this overhauling of image which 20-25 year-olds have of themselves and is clearly identified by them as part of the passage into adulthood.  The mode of living changes, and experimenting with excess drinking, even with intoxication, begins to lose its appeal.
They admit freely that they enjoy wine, which they drink at special occasions (with friends in the evening, on a romantic date).  In line with their social integration, their initiation into wine is coupled with a degree of moderation and caution over their health. “If you go out in the car, there is always a designated driver who does not drink”

French Focus:
The passing from 20-25 into the 26-30 bracket particularly marks this transition into adulthood: within the former there are 50.8% who consume wine once a week, in the latter there are 62% - a rate which remains stable until about fifty when weekly consumption rises to above 70%.

Wine, an attractive choice…
The study shows that wine confers a mature, worldly image on 20-25 year olds, and represents a consumption more controlled and enlightened, more to do with quality than quantity.  For them wine is not a drink for getting drunk, it is consumed in calmer surroundings and has the effect of  being convivial and “relaxing”.  There is also a phenomenon around wine being fashionable, which changes according to the country.  Wine is regarded as a “trendy” drink in the U.K., where it can be found in the most modern bars and in Japan, “it has become the fashion to buy your girlfriend a bottle of wine from the year of her birth”.

If the visual and sensory aspect of wine are not the first criteria which 20-25 year-olds consider, they remain important in this phase of their approach, familiarisation and tutelage.  In fact it signifies a longer lasting interest, and promises a more frequent, more diverse and more qualitative consumption for the future.

French Focus:
In France, wine is a rite of passage: for 43.7% of people between 20 and 25, drinking wine is a cultural heritage, an opinion that is only shared by 23.7% of the overall population.  Concurrently, 53% of 20 to 25 year olds stated that they are becoming more and more interested in wine: a true passion rated less true by the general population, of which only 46% say they are interested in it!

But a complicated one…
The common stumbling points for 20 to 25 years olds come from the amount of wines on sale: in terms of country (in the USA), of region (France, Belgium), of appellations (U.K.), of price difference (Japan), of colour and brand (USA, France) confounding their decisions and making it difficult to get to know.  Fear of making a mistake, therefore, often stops them from purchasing wine.
The volunteers were optimistic, however, that in the coming years their consumption will become more regular, more qualitative and diversified.  It will improve correspondingly with their purchasing power and their knowledge of wine.

French Focus:
For the 20-25 year olds, one does not talk about “complication” but about “sophistication” in buying wine and the terminology: only 20.8% find the terminology “complicated” against 61.8% who find it “sophisticated”…how telling!
The price is not a problem in France, with 70% of 20-25 year olds saying that there is a good relation between price and quality.

And tomorrow?
Speculations and recommendations
20 to 25 year olds are seeking out more accessible wines, lighter, fruitier, with a more definite clarity in terms of sensory characteristics, relationships with foods and even atmosphere.

On the other hand opinions differ according to the country regarding the containers and the packaging: if young Europeans are more fond of the traditional methods, the Japanese and the Americans are more open to innovation (individual amounts, different styles and colours of bottle).

Distribution, as it exists, plays a big part in the expectations of the 20-25 year olds: they unanimously approved the idea in all 5 countries of more information being available on the place of sale and marketing better targeted on the young.  So then, why not make a range of wines for the younger generation?  Or introduce a wine bar “youth night”, where it could be themed each week on a different region or country, with wine, music and food to match.

In a market that is undergoing serious change, new habits of consumption are appearing.  Young people between 20 and 25 are involved in these changes in each country: the concept of a “brand” is well accepted in the USA, particularly a brand aimed at the young; in the UK “youthism” is shunned and the brand must remain “serious”; in Japan, the brand is reassuring and allows those who want to become familiar with wine to do so.  In Europe, even if you still want to look trendy, you tend to stick to the traditional codes.

French Focus
The 20-25 year olds buy most of their wines in supermarkets (59.3%) but there are already 37.5% who go to a specialist shop, a proportion which increases with age (47.5% of 26-30 year olds buy wine in specialist shops) and doesn’t stop increasing as the population ages.
They are twice as likely than the rest of the population (31%) to appreciate white wine and the majority consider wine to be a part of their culture and their history (81%) and that it is neither modern nor passé (67.7%)
What influences their buying choices?  Firstly the countries and regions (73% of people surveyed).  Following this factor are the price (48.7%) and the grape variety (30.7%).  The brand comes in fourth position (27.7%), above the presentation and packaging (9.8%).

TRANSLATED BY VITISPHERE.