John Murphy, the President and Chief Financial Officer of The Coca-Cola Company, recently spoke at a media roundtable and expressed his optimism about the Indian market. He stated that the company plans to continue investing in the country through its partners, as it believes that India’s progress in infrastructure, electrification, and digitisation presents a long runway for the economy to grow. He also mentioned that India’s rapid development has created an emerging middle class, which ensures sustained growth for years to come.
The company plans to divest its investments in bottling operations around the world, including in India, but it will do so thoughtfully and deliberately. The focus will shift towards brand building and being a good franchisor. Murphy believes that the systematic infrastructure development across India and the electrification of rural areas have transformed the landscape, which is a key driver for the company’s bullish outlook on India.
John Murphy, Company’s President and Chief Financial Officer said, “When you have an economy growing, our industry typically benefits from economic growth.”
“For us, there are tremendous ingredients to the growth equation that we are developing. And to manage growth, you have to invest. We are fortunate to have partners in India who believe in the opportunity they have and are investing in infrastructure and people.”
“Thoughtful and very deliberate manner” as it plans to focus on building brands and being a good franchisor.”
“Our aim is to focus on the things that we are good at, which is building brands and being a good franchisor and partner to our bottlers around the world… and developing the ecosystem. So over the years, we will divest in other regions… we do it in a very thoughtful and very deliberate manner.”
Two of the company’s brands, Thums Up and Sprite, have achieved the billion-dollar revenue generation mark in the past two years. The company expects that its homegrown mango drink, Maaza, will become a billion-dollar brand as well. When asked about the entry of Reliance, led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, into the cola market by relaunching the native brand Campa, Murphy responded that competitive intensity is actually good for the beverages industry.
In 2019, The Coca-Cola Company divested its bottling operations of Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd (HCCBL) in four territories in North India. Presently, HCCBL operates close to 25 plants in India spread across South, West, and East India. The company will continue to focus on building its brand and maintaining its reputation as a good franchisor, as it continues to invest in the Indian market.