Maaza, the Coca-Cola’s fruit-drink brand in India, has come out as the fastest growing brand this summer season. This growth is because of its strong rural presence at an affordable price.
Maaza is Coca-Cola India’s third largest brand after Thums Up and Sprite, but it has overtaken their growth rate. The mango drink, which competes with Parle’s Frooti and Slice from PepsiCo, is the category leader within juices.
Sedef Salingan Sahin, President, Global Nutrition Category, Coca-Cola Company, said that Maaza is at the heart of its nutrition business in India and one of the leading brands there. The company is also working on new innovations to build a much broader Minute Maid proposition in India.
Coca-Cola plans to make significant investments in the nutrition category over the next three to four years.
According to Arnab Roy, vice president and head of marketing for Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia, the nutrition category will be one of the company’s key growth drivers.He said, “We are investing to set up additional manufacturing lines for Maaza.” Our goal is for the brand to grow in the high double digits over the next three years.A lot of incremental growth for the brand has come from expansion in rural markets, with a focus on smaller packs at affordable price points.
Roy said that Maaza could touch a billion dollars in sales “in the next few years”. Coca-Cola India plans to take the mango drink to markets outside India and is working on obtaining regulatory country-specific clearances.
The beverage giant has brought in Amitabh Bachchan and Pooja Hegde for its summer campaign.
In FY21, Maaza reported total sales of Rs. 2,826 crore, higher than the sales of Coke.
Maaza is a heritage brand and has been around since 1976. It was acquired by The Coca-Cola Company along with Thums Up and Limca from Ramesh Chauhan of Parle Bisleri in 1993, when it had re-entered the Indian market.