Cash-strapped consumers are giving Australia’s liquor makers a headache

A recent slump in sales means Sydney liquor store owner Louise Dowling has to work an additional 40 hours a week to make up for the staff she had to let go, as a prolonged cost of living crisis in Australia drives more people to drink less.

“Without the foot traffic, without the sales, you do not have the money to employ extra people,” said Dowling at her P&V Wine + Liquor Merchants store in Enmore, a popular dining and nightlife suburb.

“Everyone’s trying to tighten their belts, including us.”

After a surge in sales propelled by pandemic lockdowns and unused savings, Australia’s alcohol industry is in its sharpest downturn in memory as more people cut back on discretionary spending and turn to healthier ways to relax.

In the year to June, alcohol sales grew just 0.7 per cent, the slowest pace in at least a quarter century, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data, and even that small increase was more likely due to rising prices, as alcohol sales volumes fell 3.9 per cent in the same period.