Whether it’s the highly trained athlete or the casual runner, more consumers are turning to beverages to support their workout regimens. According to Chicago-based Mintel’s January report “Nutritional and Performance Drinks – US,” dollar sales of these drinks reached $11.5 billion in 2014. The market research firm anticipates the category will be a solid performer going forward as consumers continue to embrace health, convenience and function. Because of this, Mintel is forecasting sales gains of 26 percent — 13 percent when adjusted for inflation — for nutritional and performance drinks through 2019.
Although Mintel estimates that sports drinks account for more than half of the total U.S. retail sales — 59 percent — in 2014, the strongest growth in the category came from the performance drink segment, which was because of the growth of new products geared toward “less-extreme athletes.”