MUMBAI: Coca-Cola India is set to introduce American sports drink BodyArmorLyte to the subcontinent this summer, as the beverage giant scrambles to capitalise on what executives have joyfully described as “early arrivals” of heatwave conditions.
Coca-Cola India & southwest Asia vice-president Sundeep Bajoria announced the expansion with palpable enthusiasm for the premature scorching temperatures that have already begun tormenting the nation’s 1.4 billion residents.
BodyArmorLyte, a coconut water-based hydration drink popular in the US, will join other newcomers including Honest Tea – an organic offering sourced from Assam – and Vitaminwater, which has thus far been confined to testing in airport terminals where dehydrated travellers are presumably less price-sensitive.
The company expects its established brands ThumsUp and Sprite to each reach the $2 billion sales mark in India, though Bajoria tactfully avoided committing to any timeline for this achievement, to Economic Times.
When questioned about competition from Reliance Industries’ resurrected Campa Cola brand, Bajoria echoed his global president’s diplomatic stance: “We welcome competition,” he said, presumably while clutching a stress ball under the table.
Coca-Cola appears undeterred by inflation concerns, with Bajoria explaining they would capture “a significant part of that inflation through price package mix and architecture” – corporate speak for “we’ll make the bottles slightly smaller rather than raising prices directly.”
The company is counting on recent tax relief for the middle class to drive consumption.
