Manav to spruce up beer network in northern India

Ghaziabad-based Manav Breweries Pvt Ltd, one of the divisions of the $120 million JHV Group, is planning to strengthen its marketing network in the northern region.

According to Amit Jaiswal, director of Manav Breweries, though the company's products were available in over 14 states, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi accounted for over 56 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively, of the sales. The company sells its beer under the brand names Ikon and Karma premium lager beers (in the mild segment) and Target (in the strong segment).

"We are looking at strengthening our presence in the northern states like Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Jammu and Kashmir," Jaiswal said.

The company recently bagged the contract to supply beers to the armed forces through the CSD (Canteen supply department). The company, which exports Karma, premium lager beer, to the US and Australia, is planning to tap other markets as well.

"The company is set to bag big orders from the UK, Canada, Japan and beer-consuming countries in the European Union as Manav products have been well accepted," Jaiswal said.

"Though we have a 300,000-cases-a-month production capacity at our Ghaziabad plant, set up two years ago, we are exploring the possibility of setting up new units. But that depends on the market demand," he said. In the next five years, the company aimed at a production capacity of 5 million cases a month, he added.

The company uses 60 per cent production capacity during April-June, considered to be a season for beer sales, and the rest of the year 40-42 per cent capacity is utilised.

The JHV Group, headed by Jawaharlal Jaiswal, has set up a 5,000 TCD (tonne crushed per day) sugar mill at Gadaura in the Maharajganj district of Uttar Pradesh. It has taken over two non-functioning sugar units in Padrauna in Uttar Pradesh and Mehrora in the Chhapra district of Bihar. The company aims at revamping these units to increase production capacity.

In keeping with its north focus, the JHV group, which has over 750 luxury rooms spread across three-star to five-star hotels in the country, has entered into a pact with the Cendent Hotels to open a five-star property at Varansi in UP. The hotel is likely to be inaugurated in January 2006.

"Manav Breweries has proved to be one of the most successful operations, as the company has managed to build great brands in a short span of time and has also gone ahead to get export orders," said senior Jaiswal.

HAPPY HOURS

The Ghaziabad-based company is one of the divisions of $120 mn JHV Group

It sells beer under the brand names Ikon, Karma and Target

Its products are available in over 14 states, but UP, Delhi account for most of its sales

Now it wants to boost sales in Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, HP, Uttaranchal, J&K