Pernod Ricard launches online site selling directly to consumer

Pernod Ricard is the latest drinks company to open up shop online selling directly to the consumer.

Sipstor launched this week in the UK selling familiar brands such as Absolut, Jameson and Chivas Regal, as well as brands such as the flavoured vodka Oddka which are less readily available in off-licences.

Launch products on the site include Jameson Select Reserve sold in a bundle with tickets to the première of the heavily marketed movie Anchorman 2.

Pernod Ricard cited the existence of the “digitally savvy consumer” in the UK as the reason for launching the site there initially.

The company intends rolling out Sipstor to other European markets.

A spokeswoman for Irish Distillers Pernod Ricard said timings, including plans for Ireland, are yet to be confirmed.

Online alcohol sales in the UK have double in the past five years, with buyers spending on average of just over €21 each time they shop.

“Moves into e-tailing by the drinks giants aren’t a threat to off-licences,” says Grattan O’Brien, head of online sales at O’Brien Wines.

He says the growth of alcohol e-tailing in Ireland is strong and the average spend by O Brien’s online customers is in excess of €60 – the point at which free delivery kicks in and reflecting their purchasing preferences, which tend to be cases of wine.

“The drinks companies are creating awareness and another route to market so that makes sense,” says O’Brien, adding that their efforts would always be in conjunction with off-licences. “Alcohol tends to be bought and consumed in the same 24-hour period so the vast majority of purchases will be from a shop.”