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Brands Report 2024: How We Did It
We’ve been running the Brands Report since 2010 – the year after Agile Media launched the World’s 50 Best Bars – and, while it has evolved since then, taking in new categories and drawing data from an ever-rotating panel of bars, it still seeks to answer the same question. Which brands do the best bars buy – and why?
And if you’re reading this, you probably know why that’s important: in bars, as many other industries, trends tend to start at the top and percolate down. The Brands Report is therefore a snapshot of the business behaviour of a very specific group of bars, whose owners, head bartenders and bar managers complete detailed questionnaires on their spirits buying habits. This invitation-only 100-strong sample is made up of venues that have appeared in recent editions of The Word’s 50 Best Bars (1-100), Tales of the Cocktail’s Spirited Awards, Top 500 Bars, plus regional awards such as North America and Asia’s 50 Best Bars and national awards such as the Class Bar Awards and similar organisations from around the world.
To create the best coverage, about 5% of the 100 were ‘editor’s picks’ – bars of high regard in regions less represented by awards. The panel rotates each year to reflect the current geography of the industry’s most influential bar scenes.
GEOGRAPHY
This year, the 100 bars taking part in the survey were drawn from 38 countries and the markets with a high concentration of top bars are represented accordingly.
Europe, with strong bar scenes across many developed drinks markets, made up 37% of the sample. Fifteen countries in Europe contributed bars, led by Italy, the UK, Greece and Portugal. By way of example, 50 Best 2023 bars ‑ The Cambridge Public House, Line, Salmon Guru and Himkok all took part. The North American contingent shrunk to 18% this year with the US continuing to lead the charge with the likes of The Dead Rabbit, Mace and Double Chicken Please being selected, along with significant contributions from Mexico and Canada.
Asia made up 17% of the sample of the world’s best bars from eight countries. China was the biggest contributor with Coa and Quinary in Hong Kong and Hope & Sesame of Guangzhou making the cut. Singapore’s Jigger & Pony and Bangkok’s Tropic City also featured for Asia.
The biggest growth in representation comes from South America, which has more than doubled on last year to take 17% of the panel from seven countries. Argentina and Peru were the biggest contributors with the likes of Tres Monos and Carnaval being selected. Bars from Africa & the Middle East made up 6% from South Africa, Lebanon, and the UAE while Australasia represented 5%.
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