Coca-Cola India to juice up on local fruits-based products

Stepping up its focus on using local fruits to launch new products, Coca-Cola India is all set to extend its brand Minute Maid to introduce whipped frozen fruit desserts as part of its strategy to launch ‘Beverage Plus’ products. The company is also expanding its fruit drink brand Maaza with two new variants.

The frozen fruit dessert, called Minute Maid Perfect Fruit, which has no added dairy or sugar, will be launched in top 10 cities early next year. While globally, the company first started testing Perfect Fruit in Australia, India will be the first market to see the product’s full-scale launch.

T Krishnakumar, President, Coca-Cola India and South-West Asia, said: “As we focus on executing our ‘fruit circular economy’ strategy, we are working on launching ‘Beverage Plus’ product innovations. In India, we will launch Minute Maid Perfect Fruit by processing Indian fruits, as we are committed to Indianising our fruit-based beverage business.”

The company intends to launch Perfect Fruit in flavours such as mango and litchee at high footfall retail outlets and youth hangouts, besides travel retail channels such as airports.

“We believe such kind of high-level fruit-based indulgence products will contribute 10-12 per cent in terms of value to the Minute Maid franchise in the next 3-4 years,” he added.

On the expansion of brand Maaza, he said: “We felt that by providing just one offering under brand Maaza, we were limiting ourselves in a diverse market like India. We are launching two new variants — Maaza Gold for consumers looking for the most indulgent mango drink and Maaza Refresh, which is for consumers looking for a lighter, on-the-go beverage option.” While Maaza Refresh will be available in smaller packs at an affordable price point, Maaza Gold is more of a premium product.

The company has also been steadily expanding the range of its juice brand, Minute Maid, with the launch of eight flavours within the past 4-5 months. It is now promoting the range with its ‘Fruits of India’ campaign.

It is also looking to tap into ethnic flavours and launch products in limited geographies. For instance, it has launched Minute Maid Mango Kesar and Minute Maid Mango Dusehri.

Coca-Cola India has been focussing on a three-pronged strategy that has helped its sales volume grow 6 per cent and revenues 16 per cent in the September quarter. “We are focussing on creating a consumer-centric portfolio of sparkling and juice beverages. We are also focussing more on convenience and small packs. Also, we are starting to celebrate the local connect better, with initiatives such as ‘Fruits of India’,” Krishnakumar added.