As part of key organisational changes, Britannia Industries on Monday announced that its Managing Director Vinita Bali, who steered the company through some tough times, has moved to an international role within the organisation.
Britannia, which makes Tiger and Pure Magic biscuits among others, in a press statement, said its Chief Operating Officer, Varun Berry will take over from Bali.
This is the second key change in the company this year. In January, Neeraj Chandra, was replaced as COO by Berry. Chandra is now the Vice-President for Strategy and New Business Development.
Berry, who has worked with PepsiCo Foods and Hindustan Unilever, takes over the domestic operations of Britannia at a time when non-biscuit revenues are expected to grow at a faster clip than biscuits, the company’s core business.
Vinita Bali will now look after international business, Britannia Nutrition Foundation and new business development. Britannia’s international business contributes about 10 per cent of its total revenues.
“With these changes, we are preparing Britannia for high growth in our operations by catering to the changing food habits of the evolving Indian consumer and pursuing opportunities for growth in the overall food domain, here and abroad,” company Chairman Nusli Wadia said.
Last fiscal, Britannia’s consolidated net profit grew 30 per cent to Rs 260 crore on revenues of Rs 6,136 crore, up 12.4 per cent compared with the same period previous year. The increase in net profit was attributed to focus on consumer offtake as well as changes in the company’s operational efficiencies.
On Monday, the Britannia scrip went up nearly 16 per cent to close at Rs 665.85 on the BSE.