Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has entered into a deal with Pure Drinks to acquire the once popular cola brand Campa. Reliance is also purchasing another soft-drink brand Sosyo for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition comes as a part of its latest strategy to enter into the FMCG business.

The purchase will pit Reliance against multinational giants Pepsi and Coca-Cola. Reliance is planning to move aggressively into the beverages business through the Reliance Retail stores, JioMart and the small outlets that purchase products from the company.

A PTI report quoting sources said Reliance has acquired the Campa brand from the Delhi-based Pure Drinks group for Rs 22 crore. It will re-launch the brand in the cola flavour, lemon, and orange variants. At present, Campa is bottled by Jallan Food Products.

Speaking at the RIL annual general meeting on Monday, Isha Ambani who heads RIL’s retail business, said Reliance Retail will foray into the FMCG business this year.

The FMCG entry follows that in pharmacy retail with the acquisition of Netmeds. Mukesh Ambani’s daughter said Reliance’s grocery business is the largest in India, with a network of nearly 2,500 stores, and digital commerce platforms such as JioMart and Milkbasket. Analysts said acquisitions into newer segments cannot be ruled out after FMCG.

Sosyo is an aerated drink that is a mixture of apple cider and grape with some ingredients imported from Germany and Italy. It was launched in 1923 by Mohsin Hajoori during the swadeshi movement and has been popular in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

Pure Drinks was the brand launched by late Congress parliamentarian Charanjit Singh soon after Coca-Cola was asked to leave India in 1977. After that, the brand was a major player in the Indian market for the next 15 years in the absence of foreign competition.

The brand’s slogan was “The Great Indian Taste”, an appeal to nationalism. Coca-Cola re-entered in 1993 and acquired brands such as Thums Up, Maaza, Gold Spot and Limca from Parle Agro. After the return of multinationals to the soft drink market in the 1990s, the popularity of Campa Cola declined and its operations were scaled down as it could not sustain the competition.

The Indian FMCG market is estimated to be over $100billion and is largely dominated by big firms such as HUL, Reckitt, P&G, Nestle and home-grown companies like Dabur, Emami and Marico.

“We believe the company (Reliance Retail) will have to invest in brand building and marketing to transform this business (FMCG) from private label to full-fledged FMCG operations,” analysts at Morgan Stanley said in a report.