Coca-Cola chief James Quincey on Monday said “there will be some degree of problems’’ for businesses if there were disruptions in society in the form of riots or protests even as he expressed the hope that India will resolve its issues in a democratic manner.
This observation of Quincey, chairman and CEO of Coca-Cola, comes at a time India has become the fifth-largest market by volume for the company following the sale of one billion unit cases in 2019 even though the domestic economy is passing through a consumption-led slowdown.
While it took 21 years for the company to reach this number, a bullish Quincey, who feels that India is a “super attractive market”, expects the volumes to double to two billion units in the next five years. It is also expected that India would be the third largest market in the future, he said.
Responding to a question on whether the protests in India over the past few months against the Centre’s move to amend citizenship rules and the recent riots (in the capital) have impacted consumption, Quincey said: “If there are disruptions in the functioning of a society, there will be some degree of problems for all businesses.’’
However, he was quick to add that one of the biggest factors in favour of India is its democracy. “India is a vibrant democracy and it needs to work out what is going on. All of us are hopeful that things will get resolved in an appropriate democratic manner. We see a lot of long term potential (in India) and one of the reasons is its democracy,’’ he said.
According to the company, it has made strong value share gains in India with both sparkling (carbonated) and non-sparkling offerings. The plan is now to continue growing its core brands by rolling out variants of the Thums Up, Limca, Fanta, Sprite and Maaza, including no-sugar options. The company also plans to diversify its portfolio by venturing into new beverage categories.
Replying to a question on the impact of the coronavirus on its global operations, the Coca-Cola chief said the company was shielded from any short-term impact as it has a strong degree of localisation in every geography which imparted a resilience to its business. However, he pointed out that it would be a different story if the issue gets prolonged.
Senior officials said that the company has been reducing the sugar content in Maaza and Thums Up over the last eight months.
The target is to get the sugar content in the drinks to the 6 grams level.
