January – the time when many kickstart positive changes to their drinking habits.
And with the Christmas decorations down and packed away, millions of Brits will be dialling down the booze and turning to no or low options for the month.
According to research by Alcohol Change, the official body behind the Dry January® initiative, 8 million people attempted a full 31 days off alcohol in 2025 while a further 8.8 million cut down over the month.1 It’s a similar situation later in the year, too, when Macmillan’s fundraiser Sober October challenges social drinkers to reset their relationship with alcohol.
While the benefits of improved physical health, better sleep and more energy may be a win for consumers, a slump in alcohol sales can be less appealing for the hospitality industry. Is social sobriety becoming a widely adopted trend that hospitality can no longer ignore? And just how seasonal really is it?
“Dry January and Sober October aren’t ‘special projects’ anymore; they’re simply the busiest moments in a year-round moderation trend,” says Laura Willoughby MBE, founder of Club Soda, an independent retailer specialising in low and no-alcohol drinks.
“By the time we hit January, at least a third of guests at any event are not drinking or are actively moderating, and that number rises sharply in January, July and October.”
Stocking up on extra OJ or a token zero-percent beer won’t cut it either, she says. “They’ll either drink something they don’t really want, or leave earlier – both bad outcomes for hospitality.”
Yet there are opportunities for restaurants to get creative with soft drinks and alcohol-free tipples to appease the non-drinking crowd – and research shows plenty are getting it right.
Ditching bubbles for botanicals
Data from Lightspeed supports the uptake of non-alcoholic drinks during these established ‘sober’ months and they outpace both wine and beer. In January 2025 alcohol-free drink sales in restaurants collected from 1,216 locations in the UK reached £8.5m, compared to £7.3m for wine and £4.9m for beer. In the same month, non-alcoholic drinks ranked first by volume, with over 2.46 million units sold, versus beer (851,000 units) and wine (403,000 units).
The appetite for alcohol-free options in October 2025 was higher, with non-alcohol sales topping £10m. Furthermore, the data shows average food and drink spend per head in January remained stable (£30-£33), despite the shift in beverage choices, showing a consumer willingness to spend in restaurants even when avoiding alcohol.
Mocktails, coffee and specialty non-alcoholic drinks emerged as strong performers during both January and October, suggesting that restaurants who innovate with alcohol-free menus can attract non-drinking, health-conscious diners.
“For the hospitality industry, Dry January presents a unique opportunity to creatively engage with customers while meeting the needs of those participating in the alcohol-free annual event,” says Liam Crooks, MD of EMEA at Lightspeed.
What does the pivot away from alcohol mean for operators whose alcohol sales historically are crucial for profitability? How can restaurants drive drink sales during these months – throughout the year – and tap the sobriety trend?
Catering for a non-drinking market
Marica Tonucci, Beverage Operations Manager at Big Mamma, says that January has consistently led to increased demand for non-alcoholic beverages, prompting her team to devise new alcohol-free offerings in 2023 and 2024. They discovered that non-drinkers still want full body and flavour in the glass, rather than lesser, alcohol-free imitations of the classics. This has steered their creation of original mocktails that better meet customer demand.
“With the non-alcoholic market expanding, people are in search of flavour even when they’re not drinking alcohol. Flavour and balance is still crucial, so we offer drinks that are well-balanced and with structure and body,” she says.
She believes the Dry January effect is “absolutely” permeating into other months throughout the year. “There is also a greater tendency of people choosing healthier options which means less alcohol and less calories as well. This is reflected across all months, even in the summer.”
Successfully mastering alcohol-free creations and delivering them with equal pizazz to their alcoholic counterparts comes down to staff knowledge around products and communicating this to the customer.
“The number one consideration is understanding the customer,” adds Tonucci. “January is a great time to test different menu options because people are drinking less. The goal for us is to develop our drinks menu instead of just adding on [non-alcoholic options] as part of the menu.”
Club Soda’s Willoughby agrees. “January is when consumers are most open to trying new things and savvy operators use this to test cocktails, add a draught AF beer, run tastings, and gather data for the rest of the year.”
The year-round opportunity
For Holly Purnell-Swan, Sommelier at Caper & Cure and Carmen Street Wine in Bristol, the plan for January and October is to get a few more non-alcoholic specials in and create “some really lovely non-alcoholic cocktails”.
But she has seen a definite general trend in customers drinking less all year round which reduces the impact of Dry January and Sober October on the hospitality industry.
“People are choosing to drink less all the time, rather than just go sober for a month,” she says. “We have reacted to this by increasing our non-alcoholic offerings and making sure that it’s something a lot more exciting than just your average soft drink.”
As well as a non-alcoholic IPA, a locally brewed non-alcoholic lager and Botivo – a botanical aperitif that works well in cocktails – they will also be serving L’Antidote, a non-alcoholic natural wine that’s made from “gamey grape juice and loads of herbs” – ingredients and botanicals to give it the body that alcohol usually provides. “It’s really gastronomic – a genuinely really enjoyable drink and it’s not super sweet like some of the other alternatives.”
By prioritising premium alcohol-free and soft drink options, operators can protect margins and drive sales, while attracting health-conscious diners willing to pay for quality. Mindful drinking is here to stay. As Willoughby summarises: “Dry January isn’t the reason – it’s merely the loudest moment in a long-term shift.”
References
1. Dry January® / Research conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2000 nationally representative UK general consumers aged 18+. The data was collected between 06.02.2025 - 10.02.2025.
