• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

Our Bureau

Mr Alex von Behr, President, Coca-Cola India, addressing a press conference held in Mumbai.

MUMBAI, March 22

COCA-COLA India's marketing plan for the coming summer peak sales season is vested with a rural thrust and rides on the back of its newly-launched 200-ml bottle, priced between Rs 5 and Rs 6 across the country.

While the soft drinks sales showed flat growth last year, sales in the current year are up by 80 per cent for the company as compared to the same period during the previous year, largely on account of this aggressive pricing strategy, said Mr Alex von Behr, President, Coca-Cola India, adding that "One of the lessons of last year is that affordability is the key."

The company had appointed 50,000 new outlets in the first two months of this year, as part of its plans to cover one lakh outlets for the coming summer season, said Mr Behr. The new outlets also covered 3,500 new villages, he added.

Rural sales, growing at a faster rate than urban sales, accounted for 30 per cent of the company's revenues, said Mr Shripad Nadkarni, Vice-President - Marketing, Coca-Cola India. Rural marketing is much more expensive, according to the company.

The company continues with its two-cola strategy, pushing Coke and Thums-Up in different cities or regions depending on the geographical preference. "Interestingly, while all soft drinks showed flat sales during the previous year, only Thums-Up showed an increase in market share," said Mr Behr.

However, the company declined to give comparative sales figures for Thums-Up and Coke.

Coca-Cola India claims a 58 per cent share of the soft drinks market; this includes a 42 per cent share of the cola market. Other products account for 16 per cent market share, chiefly led by Limca.

Its new brand Sunfill, a powder concentrate sold at Rs 2 per pouch, (which, the company claims, has a long shelf life at even 40 degrees Centigrade), has been test launched in Andhra Pradesh. It had a 20 per cent market share in those regions within two months of launch, said Mr Behr. This product will soon be rolled out in different parts of the country.

The company would also be looking at a possible launch of its new products such as iced teas that are part of its international portfolio. It would be looking at new flavours of Sunfill and Maaza, its juice brand.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section
LG audio products in market soon

Copyright © 2002, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line