The rise of non-alcoholic bars speak to a shifting trend for Gen Z and that is drinking less and less and less than previous generations. According to a 2023 Gallup poll, drinking has fallen from 72% to 62% for 18 to 34 year olds. But how does this drastic new trend impact a 125-year-old alcohol business? Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi sat down with Suntory (STBFY) CEO Tak Niinami who shared his hot take on shifting drinking habits, while acknowledging that heavy drinking is so bad. "We have to talk about that and the moderate drinking is good for you so that you can feel good and bond with your friends," he said.
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There's a whole younger generation that doesn't seem to be drinking like you and I would. I come home, I have a drink, I relax a little bit after a tough day, but they're different. Uh, how do you overcome that as a company?
Well, it doesn't mean that we need to promote heavy drinking. We just give the some ideas so that they can feel relaxing or refreshing by drinking our whiskey or our products, such as gin and vodka. We have to let them know it's a great thing to drink moderate, but not the heavy drinking, not the, of course, binge drinking, so bad. Right, so we have to talk, you know, binge drinking is so bad, heavy drinking is so bad, we have to talk about that. And moderate drinking is good for you, so that you can feel good and bond with your friends. So, and plus, um, again, uh, we have to demonstrate that we are contributing to society.
So bad.
