NEW DEHLI, India
Coca-Cola announced it will double-down on its investment in the non-alcoholic drinks market in India. The company previously project $2 billion to further develop the market by 2017 but last week upped its ante to $5 billion by 2020.
The goal is to double revenue this decade, according to a company release. Coca-Cola expects the ready-to-drink beverage segment to rapidly expand.
“Achieving continued sustainable, responsible growth in India is core to achieving our 2020 Vision of doubling system revenues in this decade,” said Muhtar Kent, Chairman and CEO, The Coca-Cola Company. “Our ongoing investment in India is focused on delivering innovation, partnerships and a portfolio that enhances the consumer experience, ensures product affordability and builds brand loyalty to deliver long-term growth.”
“NARTD (Non-alcoholic ready-to-drink) beverages have enormous growth potential in India,” he said. “Coca-Cola India has registered unit case volume growth in India for the past 23 quarters, 17 of which have seen double-digit growth,” he said.
Two of the Company’s core sparkling brands: Thums Up and Sprite are the country’s top selling soft drink brands with Coca-Cola reporting 27 percent growth in the first quarter. In the still beverage category, Coca-Colas Maaza is India’s largest selling juice drink.
The Coca-Cola Company and its bottling partners have robust plans to capture growth in India with investments in innovation, expansion of distribution network, cold drink equipment placement and augmentation of manufacturing capacity, according to the release.
Coke has invested more than $2 billion since it re-entered the India market in 1993. The company currently employs 25,000 Indian workers and provides indirect employment for 150,000 others.
“India is a strategic growth market for The Coca-Cola Company, ranking among our top 10 markets in volume globally and as the largest market in the Eurasia and Africa Group,” said Atul Singh, President and CEO, Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia.
“Our India business has been growing at a robust rate over the last five years, and our goal is to continue this momentum. The country’s demographics, economic and social parameters are all huge drivers of growth and we have to ensure that we continue to grow our offerings to be the non-alcoholic, ready-to-drink beverage company of choice for local consumers.”
Learn more at www.coca-colaindia.com.
Source: Coca-Cola Company