Empirical Study on Vodka Price in a Supermarket

In this part, we will talk about the competitors on the vodka market in France and also about other competitive dry alcohols.

1.       Main Direct Competitors of Smirnoff:

Here are the main challengers in France
                                            a. Common Vodka:

Eristoff  
Minkova
Orloff
Poliakov 
Sobieski                                

Wiborowa

b. Premium Vodka:

  Absolut Vodka

  Russian Standart
  Smirnoff

  Stolichnaya
  Zubrowka

           




                                        c. Super & Ultra Premium:

Belvedere Cîroc Dragon Bleu Grey Goose Ketel One Nuage Premium

              

To be concrete in term of product, I did an empirical price study at Géant Casino for the 0.70L bottle for basic and premium vodka:

Brand	Retailer brand	Minkova	Poliakov	Sobieski	Eristoff	Orloff	Wyborowa	Smirnoff	Russian Standart	Zubrowka	Absolut
Price	6,5€	10€	10,23€	10,47€	11,13€	12,20€	12,80€	13,63€	14,72€	15,99€	16,71€

Average market price: 12,22€

2.       Indirect competitors (whiskeys, gins, tequilas, rhums…):

For a maximum 14€ budget, what other dry alcohols can I have (alternative to vodka)?

Whiskey	William Peels	James Dowell	Label 5	Grant’s	Long John	Old Virginia	Ballantines	J&B
Price	10,66€	10,92€	10,99€	10,99€	11,37€	13,99€	13,99€	14,28€

Rum	Old Nick	Negrita	Charette	Dillon	Saint James	Bacardi
Price	8,73€	9€	9,24€	11,99€	12,55€	15,69€

Tequila	Merida	San Jose
Price	11,99€	14,23€

Others	Gibson Gin	Get 27	Gordon London Dry Gin	Basic Cognac
Price	9,99€	12,50€	12,85€	At least 14,5€

So, Smirnoff is over the average price and is considered as top range vodka like Absolut Vodka or Zubrowka. But for a premium vodka, it is affordable, more than 2€ under Zubrowka, a very famous polish vodka well known for its good taste and characteristic colour. They are quietly installed in the middle of the price range. And it is the same thing if we compare with some other dry alcohol drinks like Whiskey, Tequila, and Rum. If you want a good rum like Saint-James or Bacardi, Smirnoff is in this price interval, between 13€ and 16€. And Smirnoff vodka is also at a competitive price compared with common whiskeys (Old Virginia, Ballantines, J&B, between 11 and 14.5€ or Clan Campbell and Four Roses which are at 16-17€). We can think Smirnoff pricing is well adapted face to its main competitors on the French vodka market and globally, on the dry alcohol market.

Reference:

Personal empirical study in the Angoulême Géant Casino Supermarket

The Wild Wide... Range of Smirnoff Products

        Smirnoff Product range

Here is the complete range of Smirnoff, from the well-known Smirnoff 21 to the specific Smirnoff 111 or 120 unavailable in France. Available products in France are in bold. Some of them are available on airports. I precise, for the vodka experts, we are only dealing with vodka, so we do not talk about the different Smirnoff Ice beverage because, they are beers.

            Note: ABV means Alcohol By Volume.

21: Smirnoff Red Label, 40% ABV.

21: Smirnoff North (previously Smirnoff Norsk). This is the classic Smirnoff Red Label vodka flavored with Nordic Berries. In the United Kingdom and some other markets, it is called Smirnoff Nordic Berries.

21: Smirnoff Classic Mix. Smirnoff No. 21 vodka premixed with either lime soda or cola in a 70-cl bottle.

21: Smirnoff "Expertly Mixed". Smirnoff No. 21 vodka premixed with Cola or Tonic Water in a 250ml can. Cola mix is 6.4% ABV, Tonic is 7.5% ABV.

21: Smirnoff Vodka and Cranberry Juice. Smirnoff No. 21 vodka premixed with Ocean Spray Cranberry Juice in a 250-ml can.

21: Smirnoff Mule. Smirnoff No. 21 vodka premixed with ginger beer and lime. 4.8% ABV

21: Smirnoff Espresso. Coffee-flavored Smirnoff vodka, 37.5% ABV. 

21: Smirnoff Lime.

21: Smirnoff Green Apple.

            21: Smirnoff Vanilla.  

21: Smirnoff Blue Berry.

27: Smirnoff Silver Label Vodka, 45.2% ABV.

            55: Smirnoff Black, 40% ABV. A small-batch vodka that is produced in copper stills.

57: Smirnoff Blue Label Vodka, 50% ABV 

 60: Smirnoff Vladimir, 40%. Available only in Poland      

           

63: Smirnoff Twisted V Green Apple

66: Smirnoff Twisted V Raspberry malt beverage

67: Smirnoff Twisted V Mandarin Orange malt beverage

68: Smirnoff Twisted V Black Cherry malt beverage

69: Smirnoff Twisted V Watermelon malt beverage

84: Smirnoff Twist Arctic Berry

85: Smirnoff Twisted Raspberry. Sold in Canada.

92: Smirnoff Twisted Green Apple. Canada 7%

103: Smirnoff Twisted V Arctic Berry

 

References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smirnoff

http://sltn.co.uk/2011/10/02/vanilla-joins-smirnoff-flavours/

http://www.diageo.com/en-row/ourbrands/categories/spirits/Pages/Vodka.aspx#smirnoff

A bit of a History or How It Has Begun

Brand "Smirnoff" originated from Russia, from 1818. Since the beginning it was a vodka with pure and soft taste which was accepted by the russian csar Alexander III. For many years it was the only vodka served at the Imperial Russian Court. Later Sweden and Spain also had Smirnoff like a royal vodka.

The success was changed after the October revolution of 1917. After a change of a government all the manufactures in Russia were closed. However, fortunately, all the tradition recipes and original name were sold to Rudolf Kunett who was a supplier of grain for vodka producing.  In 1933 Ste. Pierre Smirnoff Fils has been registered in USA and Kunett had set up a small vodka plant in Bethel and was trying to build an American market. He was enjoying a notable lack of success. Americans did not drink vodka. Most had never even heard of it.

By chance John Gilbert Martin the president of Heublein Inc. decided to support new product. He offered Kunett a deal. He would buy Kunett's equipment for $14,000, give him a job and a royalty of 5 percent on each bottle of Smirnoff sold for 10 years. Kunett took the offer and Martin set out to see if he could sell Smirnoff, the vodka of the czars, in an age when there were no czars.

Smirnoff vodka is basically a mixture of pure grain alcohol and water filtered through charcoal. It requires no aging and production and sales started in Hartford in 1939 even before Heublein had any caps for the vodka bottles. Instead, caps labeled "whiskey" were used.

One of the first out-of-state sales was to a distributor in Columbia, S.C., who bought 10 cases. A short time later, the distributor ordered 50 more cases, then 500 cases. And Martin went to Columbia to check on the marketing phenomena. He later recalled, with more than a bit of delight, what he had found.

"We had a salesman down there and he had put up a great streamer: 'Smirnoff White Whiskey -- No Smell, No Taste,' " The Hartford Times quoted Martin as saying in a 1964 article. "It was strictly illegal, of course, but it was going great. People were mixing it with milk and orange juice and whatnot."

Martin created a drink. It was made of Smirnoff vodka and ginger beer and served in a copper mug. They called it the "Moscow Mule." Later Smirnoff vodka formed the basis of various types of famous cocktails.

During the Cold War with Russia the popularity of russian drink started to fluctuate and a campaign had been began to get people to drink the vodka with not only ginger beer but practically anything else, including iced tea and beef bouillon. It was all promoted by exotic high-gloss magazine ads showing Smirnoff with celebrities or in strange and wondrous places. The brand has been acquired in 1982 by Reynolds Tobacco Company for $1.4 billion. After that, Smirnoff has been re-sold to Grand Metropolitan in 1987 and today, it is owned by Diageo (merger between Grand Metropolitan and Guiness) since 1997. In 2010, the company did a 13 billion £ turnover. Smirnoff, thanks in part to the campaign, eventually became the world's best-selling vodka, and it still is.

It is known for its very wide range of vodka products, from the basic Smirnoff n°21, drunk pure or with some soft drinks or juices, to some flavored vodkas with lemon, green apple… very appreciated by young people. In 2010, Diageo sold 24.8 millions 9-litre cases.

Official website: http://www.smirnoff.com/
                              http://www.diageo.com/