As the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic sunk in and stay-at-home orders stretched on in early 2020, boredom, anxiety and other emotions had people turning to a number of forms of escape, including a lot more alcohol.
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With many restaurants forced to close indoor dining due to public safety mandates, all states but Utah relaxed their regulations, allowing people to purchase alcohol to go (which comprises 30 to 50% of restaurant sales). Delivery services like Drizly saw a 350% spike in sales from the same time period the year before, according to NPR. Alcohol quickly became the self-soothing go-to for many Americans, something that is understandable but concerns experts like Dr. Lorenzo Leggio, a researcher with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
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He told NPR, “I get worried when people think about alcohol as a tool to unwind, a tool to cope with stress and anxiety,” and urged people to speak to a doctor or other mental health professional if they find they are drinking more than usual. For a closer look, see some of the ways Americans’ alcohol spending and consumption changed in the pandemic.
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People Bought More Alcohol in General
Most shelter-in-place orders began in mid-March 2020, and not a week later, alcohol sales were surging. For the week ending March 21, 2020, Nielsen reported a 54% increase in national sales of alcohol compared with one year before. A large percentage of these sales were made online — increasing 262% from 2019.
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People Bought More ‘Off-Premises’ Alcohol
The relaxing of restrictions that allowed people to purchase alcohol (even in open containers) meant a greater number of “off-premises” sales of alcohol. During the seven-week period after most shelter-in-place orders began, ending April 18, 2020, brick-and-mortar alcohol dollar sales were up 21%, while online sales of alcohol had skyrocketed to more than twice that of a year prior, up 234%. According to Nielsen, alcohol was the fastest-growing e-commerce department among consumer packaged goods at that time.
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People Bought Larger Pack Sizes of Alcohol
Not only were people buying more alcohol, but they were also buying larger pack sizes beyond what was typical. Between Feb. 29 and April 18, 2020, sales for boxed wine were nearly 10 times greater than the year before, and sales of 1.75-liter spirits were 23 times higher. Among beer drinkers, consumers were purchasing larger pack sizes as well. Thirty-packs were up 21% and 24-packs up 20% in the week ending April 18.