Norfolk brewery looking ahead after 'hardest month' with Dry January
Redwell Brewery have seen lower trade sales during January
Last updated 4th Feb 2024
The team at a Norfolk Brewery are looking ahead to the warmer months after seeing their trade sales drop, partly due to Dry January.
An estimated 9 million people attempted to stay away from alcohol for the first month of the 2024.
Alcohol change UK, this week revealed that people using their app saved on average nearly £120.
But what impact is that having on the alcohol industry in Norfolk?
Alex Elliot is the Taproom manager at Redwell Brewery in Norwich. He said, "People kind of go into hibernation mode. You see across the board in hospitality sales go down, bums on seats go down.
"In terms of the trade sales to pubs, restaurants and shops, we've definitely seen a little downturn. Dry January has affected that because people are selling less beer."
But at Redwell, they are seeing some sections of their business doing better than expected.
Alex said, "In the taproom we've actually managed to stay fairly consistent. I haven't seen as much of a downturn as expected. We are actually up on sales compared to last year."
Now that Dry January is over, are people in Norwich and across Norfolk ready to head straight back into the counties pubs and bars?
In response Alex said, "Looking at the numbers, I often see that February sometimes takes another step down before it comes back again. So we are not preparing to see the masses again in February now Dry January is done."