{"id":34726,"date":"2025-10-10T01:11:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-10T01:11:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/gen-zs-hanging-out-at-chill-parties-over-raves-but-this-alcohol-exec-says-theres-still-an-in-for-the-booze-business\/"},"modified":"2025-10-10T01:11:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-10T01:11:21","slug":"gen-zs-hanging-out-at-chill-parties-over-raves-but-this-alcohol-exec-says-theres-still-an-in-for-the-booze-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/usa\/gen-zs-hanging-out-at-chill-parties-over-raves-but-this-alcohol-exec-says-theres-still-an-in-for-the-booze-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Gen Z&#8217;s hanging out at chill parties over raves, but this alcohol exec says there&#8217;s still an in for the booze business"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/68e4c89b5dbc4fd10daa4e6d?format=jpeg\" alt=\"People gather for a picnic near the Banpo Bridge, which stretches over the Han River in Seoul on August 8, 2025.\"\/><figcaption>Gen Zers are enjoying low-energy spaces like parks just as much as high-energy spaces like clubs, Suntory&#039;s executive said.<\/p>\n<p>ANTHONY WALLACE\/AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<ul>\n<li>A top exec from Jim Beam&#039;s parent, Suntory, said younger drinkers have unique drinking styles.<\/li>\n<li>They&#039;re not too fussed about clubs, they love to drink at home, and they&#039;re drinking low-alcohol drinks.<\/li>\n<li>Jing Mertoglu from Suntory said the new consumption patterns are opportunities, not challenges.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For Gen Z, the party has moved out of the nightclub and into picnics in the park and house parties \u2014 and they are drinking less.<\/p>\n<p>An August Gallup survey found that the number of 18 to 34-year-olds in the US \u2014 which includes young millennials \u2014 who reported that they drink alcohol dropped by 9% from 2023 to 2025.<\/p>\n<p>And Americans age 25 to 34 spent about 11% less on alcohol in 2023 than the same age group did in 2003, when adjusted for inflation, per Federal Reserve Economic Data.<\/p>\n<p>But a top executive at Suntory, the Japanese beverage company that owns the American whiskey giants Jim Beam and Maker&#039;s Mark, said there is still opportunity for booze businesses. She said Gen Zers still want to drink, but they consume different types of drinks in different spaces.<\/p>\n<p>Jing Mertoglu, the global vice president of insights and analytics at Suntory, told Business Insider that Gen Zers&#039; drinking habits deviate from those of their older siblings and parents in several ways.<\/p>\n<h2>The fun is no longer limited to the nightclub<\/h2>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/68e4c9375dbc4fd10daa4e71?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Group of multiracial friends toasting glasses of rose wine at a rustic outdoor picnic table, enjoying food and good company.\"\/><figcaption>The party has moved out of the nightclub.<\/p>\n<p>bernardbodo\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Fun has taken on a new meaning for this demographic, Mertoglu said.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of older cohorts like millennials, she said, &quot;When you go party, you only hit the karaoke bar, you only hit the disco.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>While Gen Zers enjoy these &quot;very high energy&quot; spaces, they equally appreciate mid-to-low energy spaces.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;I think they&#039;ve now broadened their options for what socialization and having fun are looking like,&quot; Mertoglu said. &quot;For some, picnics in the park are cool as well, while for others, gathering and camping mean having fun.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>More niche activities, like micro-clubs in China, drinking with friends or colleagues at campsites in South Korea, and themed parties in Singapore, are gaining popularity, she said.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, a daytime matcha rave in Singapore in August attracted a crowd of 400 people.<\/p>\n<p>Mertoglu said Gen Zers also prefer to stay in with friends more.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;I call it the home premise, where people, after COVID, have begun to be more comfortable in partaking of drinks at home and enjoying drinks and socialization with their friends,&quot; Mertoglu said.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Not only is it economical, there are certain occasions that demand that, but it&#039;s also more intimate and comfortable,&quot; she said. &quot;I don&#039;t have to drive to get to the venue, and there&#039;s a level of comfort around getting friends together.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>And experiences matter to Gen Zers. She said, &quot;They still go to concerts, they&#039;d still go to Lollapalooza, they&#039;d still spend on BTS.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>Work trends have also influenced how people consume alcohol, she said.<\/p>\n<p>Previously, after-work drinks on Fridays were a big cultural phenomenon, and older people were more used to consuming alcohol after work &quot;as a way to release,&quot; she said. That&#039;s changed.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Usually we were going out on Friday nights, but sometimes Fridays are a work-from-home day, so even that has shifted,&quot; she said.<\/p>\n<h2>Booze businesses, don&#039;t despair<\/h2>\n<figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i.insider.com\/68e4ce775dbc4fd10daa4e9a?format=jpeg\" alt=\"Various cans of alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages including Captain Morgan Rum and Coke, Bacardi MoJito, Archers and Lemonade, Malibu and Pineapple, Pina Colada Cocktail and Gordon&#039;s Gin and Tonic are displayed for sale in a supermarket.\"\/><figcaption>The demand for ready-to-drink cocktails is on the rise.<\/p>\n<p>John Keeble\/Getty Images<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Even in these low-energy spaces, like picnics or house parties, people continue to consume alcohol, she said.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;So we&#039;re not so dependent on the high-energy, high-partying moments,&quot; she said. &quot;There are still opportunities in those lower energy moments where alcohol continues to play a role.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>To address this customer trend, Suntory has introduced more ready-to-drink cocktails, which are easier to consume outdoors as they don&#039;t need to be mixed.<\/p>\n<p>The company said in an August earnings report that its Minus 196 sugar\u2010free ready-to-drink cocktails saw double-digit sales growth in Japan in the first half of 2025 compared to the year before.<\/p>\n<p>The company added that the US was its biggest ready-to-drink market, where it is expanding Minus 196&#039;s distribution and launching new flavors.<\/p>\n<p>Other brands have seen big gains in low- and no-alcohol drinks, too.<\/p>\n<p>Anheuser-Busch InBev, the Belgian owner of Budweiser and Corona, reported a 33% year-on-year increase in its non-alcoholic beer portfolio in the second quarter of this year. The company said this was led by the growth of Corona Cero, a zero-alcohol beer with added Vitamin D.<\/p>\n<p>Mertoglu said Gen Zers are more keen on health and wellness trends, which translates to drinking.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;I think they&#039;re trying to be as healthy as they can in general in all aspects of their lives,&quot; she said.<\/p>\n<p>Mertoglu said they&#039;re not just drinking mocktails and fruit juices \u2014 they want variety.<\/p>\n<p>&quot;Lighter drinks, more refreshing drinks, and slightly lower alcohol,&quot; she said.<\/p>\n<p>Read the original article on Business Insider<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Gen Zers are enjoying low-energy spaces like parks just as much as high-energy spaces like clubs, Suntory&#039;s executive said. ANTHONY WALLACE\/AFP via Getty Images A top exec from Jim Beam&#039;s parent, Suntory, said younger drinkers have unique drinking styles. They&#039;re not too fussed about clubs, they love to drink at home, and they&#039;re drinking low-alcohol [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":34727,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-34726","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-usa"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34726","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34726"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34726\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34727"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34726"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34726"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/agooka.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34726"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}