When it comes to drinks advertising, timing is everything. Seasonal moments like summer and the run up to Christmas create unmissable spikes in demand across alcohol, low/no alcohol, and soft drink categories. Out of Home (OOH) is a must have channel for drinks brands, especially when powered by our nationwide premium digital screen network.

Here’s why summer and winter are the key moments for drinks advertising and why OOH should be at the heart of your strategy.

Summer: a season made for sipping and socialising

Alcohol consumption peaks in summer

According to our Ocean Pulse survey, 67% of people drink more alcohol in summer than at any other time of year¹. Warm weather, outdoor socialising and major sporting events drive this trend, with beer emerging as the crowd favourite¹. During Euro 2024 alone, beer sales jumped 13% on match days².

With iconic summer tournaments like Wimbledon, UEFA Women’s Euros, and The Hundred, there’s a natural alignment between sport, sunshine and drinks. Summer festivals are where RTDs (Ready-to-Drink cocktails) shine, particularly among 18–34s³. 6.2 million canned cocktails were sold at Glastonbury 2024, and with 40% of customers now drinking RTDs in pubs more than last year, this category is primed for growth³.  

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Low/no alcohol and soft drinks surge

Summer isn’t just about alcohol. Low/no alcohol products are growing rapidly, especially among 18-34s⁴. On Euro 2024 match days, low alcohol beer sales rose by 38%⁵, while no-alcohol beer grew 20% in 2024 overall⁶. OOH plays a key role in raising awareness for these newer entrants, as 67% of people discovered a new brand via OOH last year⁷.

Soft drink sales also see a seasonal uplift. In summer 2024, heatwaves lifted supermarket soft drink sales by 14.3%⁸, and water sales increased by 35%⁹, outpacing carbonates and energy drinks. People also embrace summer themed beverages like iced teas and smoothies.¹⁰

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Winter: Christmas and high-spending shoppers

Festive cheers and premium choices

As the festive season approaches, drinking habits evolve, with a clear shift toward indulgence and premium choices. 64% of UK drinkers intend to consume more alcohol over Christmas than usual, rising to 75% among 18–34 year olds¹¹. Customers shift towards premium choices to either treat themselves or buy alcohol as gifts as 60% purchase premium alcohol at Christmas¹². Wine appears to be the most popular choice of beverage on Christmas Day, with 75% saying they will have at least one glass¹¹.

OOH allows brands to tap into this high intent mindset in high footfall areas. From St James Quarter’s footfall increasing by 30% YoY on 21^st December 2024¹³, to Liverpool ONE’s 26% footfall uplift between Christmas and New Year¹⁴, our prime screen destinations place brands exactly where and when shoppers are spending.

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Winter is still a time for non-alcoholic drinks

Despite the focus on alcohol, the festive season also sees a 46% YoY uplift in low/no alcoholic drinks¹⁵ and a 17% rise in soft drink sales¹⁶. Tesco saw record demand for low/no alcohol drinks in December 2024¹⁷, while convenience store data revealed significant festive uplifts in tonic water – driven by popular serves like G&Ts and vodka tonics¹⁸ – as well as Coca-Cola sales¹⁹, reflecting a strong appetite across several drink categories during the festive period.

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OOH and drinks: the perfect mix

1. Key in reaching a younger audience
OOH is the most effective channel for reaching 18–34 year olds²⁰, a key demographic for drinks brands, as they’re the most experimental with their choices and are driving growth across alcoholic, low/no alcohol and soft drink categories.

Advertising is also 38% more likely to influence beer choice for 18–34s²¹, making OOH a vital channel for visibility and impact among this impressionable audience.

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2. Essential for emerging and low/no brands
OOH plays a crucial role in helping emerging brands break through, especially in the growing low and no alcohol category, where customers are often open to trial but need to trust the brand first. 90% of those who consumed no/low drinks in 2023 chose products from brands they already knew²², showing that visibility and familiarity are key to gaining market share. OOH is not only one of the most trusted media channels²³, it’s also proven to drive brand discovery and action.

In 2024, a study conducted by Ipsos B&A found that:

• 61% of respondents indicated that OOH ads influenced their purchase decisions
• 67% said that they have discovered new brands through OOH in 2024²⁴

These findings highlight how OOH builds the trust and visibility emerging brands need, especially in a competitive and fast evolving drinks market.

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3. OOH and social: the perfect pairing for impact
Younger audiences are turning to social media to discover new drinks with 37% of 18–34s using social to find new alcohol brands²⁵, and 28% of millennials have tried drinks recommended by influencers.²⁶

According to our neuroscience research, when DOOH campaigns are shared on social, the results are amplified. A DOOH post shared by an influencer delivers a 35% increase in approach and a 16% rise in emotional intensity compared to a standard brand post. And when a social campaign is primed by premium DOOH beforehand, it performs even better, with a 5% uplift in memory and a 32% increase in dwell time.²⁷

OOH and social are a high performing combination that boosts visibility, drives engagement and leaves a lasting impression on audiences.

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4. Navigates regulatory changes
With HFSS restrictions due to ban certain drinks from online advertising and TV advertising after 9pm from 5^thJanuary 2026, OOH offers a compliant and high impact alternative. Brands affected by these changes, including some soft drinks and mixers, should be building OOH into their media plans now to maintain visibility post regulation.

For brands leveraging TV as part of their media mix, Ebiquity’s audit reveals that TV ROI increased on average by as much as 35% when supported by OOH²⁸. And OOH generates the biggest boost for TV efficiency (6%) compared to online display, organic search and social media²⁹.

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Our screens: where high impact meets high footfall

Our premium DOOH network places drinks brands at the heart of the UK’s premium retail destinations, just as footfall and purchase intent peak across summer and the festive season.

From Westfield London and Stratford to Battersea Power Station and Canary Wharf, our London locations alone offer multiple touchpoints across key shopping, dining and gifting hubs. Nationwide, our screens are placed in destinations like Liverpool ONE, St James Quarter in Edinburgh and Birmingham New Street.

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These locations offer significant seasonal spikes, especially in Q3 and December when dwell times and retail spend rise. Our large format screens perfectly complement standard D6 campaigns, together delivering a 26% uplift in engagement and a 20% increase in emotional intensity³⁰. Many of our retail destinations offer both formats, giving brands the opportunity to build layered, high impact campaigns that maximise visibility right at the point of purchase, when shoppers are most receptive.

Creativity that converts

OOH has endless creative opportunities and has evolved into a dynamic, experience led channel offering brands the chance to deliver contextual, interactive and memorable campaigns. With Ocean React, brands can serve real-time, responsive creatives, from weather triggered iced drink ads, live countdowns to happy hour, or on screen celebrations during key sporting moments. It’s contextual relevance at scale, designed to capture attention when it matters most.

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And it doesn’t stop at the screen. With experiential activations, from sampling and branded pop-ups to summer of sport fan zones, drinks brands can bring campaigns to life, driving immediate engagement and measurable uplift in sales. Research shows that 91% of customers said they would feel more confident about a brand after participating in an activation or experience³¹ and over 90% of people said they would be more likely to buy from a brand after an activation or event experience³².

Whether it’s summer sipping or festive toasting, drinks brands can’t afford to miss these seasonal moments. OOH is key to delivering the reach, relevance and impact needed to drive awareness, influence purchase and stay top of mind when people are out and ready to buy.

To book your drinks category presentation with a member of our sales team, or find out more about our DOOH opportunities, email salesenquiries@oceanoutdoor.com

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¹ Ocean Pulse drinks survey, May 2025
² Kantar – Drinks Retailing: UEFA Euro 2024 boosts beer sales, Jul 202
³ MOTH insights, 2025
⁴ Drinkaware, September 2024
⁵ YouGov Profiles – Age group: 18-34s, May 2025
⁶ IWSR – The UK No-Alcohol Market: Key Statistics and Trends, 2025 
⁷ Out \ Look: The Attention Advantage, 2024
⁸ Reuters, 2024
⁹ Convenience Store, 2025
¹⁰Ocean Pulse drinks survey, May 2025
¹¹Drinkaware: Festive Drink Patterns, Dec 2024
¹²Ocean Pulse drinks survey, May 2025
¹³St James Quarter, 2025
¹⁴Liverpool ONE, 2025
¹⁵The Telegraph, December 2023
¹⁶Convenience Store, November 2024
¹⁷Industry Intelligence, February 2025
¹⁸Convenience Store, November 2023
¹⁹The Grocer, February 2024
²⁰IPA Touchpoints, 202
²¹YouGov Profiles – Age group: 18-34s, May 2025
²²Statistica, 2024
²³Advertising Association, 2023
²⁴Out \ Look: The Attention Advantage, 2024
²⁵YouGov Profiles, May 2025
²⁶IMPOSSIBREW –  Millennials and Non-Alcoholic Beer: Key Trends, 2024
²⁷NeuroInsight/Ocean Outdoor ‘DOOH – The Vital ingredient’, 2023
²⁸Ebiquity ‘Creating a better media world together – performance for today, branding for tomorrow’, 2023
²⁹Mediacom/Wavemaker/Gain Theory – Demand Generation, Nov 2019
³⁰The Attention Dividend research by Lumen and Ocean Outdoor, 2025
³¹Economic Times, 2022
³²The Drum, 2023