Coca-Cola kicked off its first major initiative with newly-appointed brand ambassador Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai recently by launching the Support My School programme. In the city for the occasion, Coca-Cola India and South West Asia president & chief executive officer Atul Singh spoke to Viveat Susan Pinto on the company’s strategy. Edited excerpts:
Why Sachin when you have Imran on board?
Sachin is a great role model for youth. The values he exhibits on and off the field are those the Coca-Cola company believes in. It’s a great marriage of what we believe in and what Sachin stands for, of honesty, integrity, sportsmanship, collaboration, a healthy lifestyle. We are glad to have him on board.
Your company has said Sachin will be part of the corporate campaigns and CSR (corporate social responsibility) initiatives. Does this mean Imran will be part of the brand-building activities? Are you, then, subscribing to the policy of your rival, Pepsi, which phased out ageing stars for younger icons?
I cannot comment on what other companies are doing. How we wish to use our brand ambassadors is something the marketing and research teams will decide. Coca-Cola is a universal brand. We are positioned in a certain manner and stand for certain values. The talent we use is based on the message we want to communicate at that point in time. This is all driven by consumer insight. There are a lot of variables involved. Over the years, we have used multiple brand ambassadors. All of this is based on the message we want to communicate.
Unlike 2009, which was a drought year, 2010 was characterised by a prolonged rain spell, impacting demand in the second half of the year. How are you combating this? Are you looking to bring down prices? You have already reduced prices of select SKUs in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.
We are in the quiet period at the moment on account of our fourth-quarter and full-year results, which are due soon, so I cannot throw light on our pricing policy. But we have reported our numbers up to September 2010. The latter was our 17th consecutive quarter of growth. If you look at the opportunity in India, the demographics, the GDP growth, all of it makes the country a very strategic market. It is a market we are going to continue to invest behind, both on the carbonated as well as non-carbonated beverage fronts. We are piloting products such as Nestea and Maaza Milky Delite here. Our plans are in place.
Coca-Cola was also the first company to have applied to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India for permission to use Stevia, a natural sweetener, in its products, a few months ago. Has there been any progress on that front?
An application has been made, but these things take time. There are processes the government goes through, so it will take its course. Whenever there is a new ingredient, it takes time to get approval. We understand it and are fully prepared for it.
Even as you wait for approvals to come through, input cost pressures have hurt food & beverage companies. It’s happening against the backdrop of a slowdown in sales. Your comments?
We continue to evaluate all input costs like all other companies do. Input costs are one variable when taking a pricing decision. There are other factors, too. We follow the brand, pack, price, channel and occasion strategy. What I mean here is that we have to give the right product at the right price through the right channel. So, yes, input costs are there, but the variables I pointed out earlier are important, too, something we count in our overall strategy.
2010 was characterised by a lot of activity on the non-carbonated beverage front. Will that continue into 2011?
We will invest behind both carbonated and non-carbonated beverages. The opportunity exists for both in India.
2011 is also the year of cricket. While many advertisers such as you will rush to make the best of it, some such as Hindustan Unilever have opted out of it. Your comments?
Cricket is a passion for all of us. Advertisers take their decisions to advertise on a certain property based on what they want to communicate and who they want to reach. We will take the decisions based on what our agencies tell us. Just wait and see.
