Coca-Cola lost value share in India's NARTD segment in the June quarter, citing investment timing and affordability pushes. Campa Cola competition persists; Varun Beverages avoids price war.
Coca-Cola Co. lost value market share in India’s non-alcoholic ready-to-drink (NARTD) beverages segment during the April-June quarter, the company said in its earnings statement released 28 July. The decline came even as the company invested in cold-drink equipment and launched lower-priced variants to compete with Reliance Industries’ Campa Cola, which has been gaining ground since its reintroduction in March 2023.
“The company lost value share in total NARTD beverages (in Asia Pacific), as gains in Japan and China were more than offset by a loss in India,” the company said.
Management attributed the loss to three factors. Investment timing accounted for roughly one-third. Another third came from affordability initiatives – the low-priced variants meant to attract price-sensitive consumers. The remaining third was geographical mix: faster growth in India and China versus developed markets like Australia, Japan and Korea dragged down the blended value share, Chief Executive Officer Henrique Braun said in the post-earnings analyst call.
“One was investment timing, one-third of it. Another third was of the affordability initiatives that are important for us to bring the consumers to the base in the right way,” Braun said. “The other third is just the geo mix, because when you have India and China outgrowing, for instance, other developed markets like Australia and Japan and Korea, then you have that geo mix impact on that.”
Coca-Cola’s unit case volume grew 5% in the quarter, led by India, China, the U.S. and Brazil. Net revenue rose 7% to $13.4 billion. The company also benefited from extreme summer weather in Europe and from FIFA World Cup sponsorship and U.S. 250th anniversary celebrations in the Americas.
India’s competitive pressure is mounting. Reliance’s Campa Cola, relaunched in March 2023, achieved gross sales of over ₹4,700 crore in fiscal 2026, according to the source. The Indian soft drinks market is estimated at about ₹60,000 crore. Varun Beverages, the PepsiCo India bottler, reported consolidated revenue of ₹8,650.6 crore for the June quarter, up 20.8% from a year earlier but below the Bloomberg consensus estimate of ₹8,675.9 crore. Net profit rose 15.1% to ₹1,525.4 crore, also missing estimates.
Varun Beverages Chairman Ravi Jaipuria said the ₹10 price point is “a non-profitable category for us” and the company aims to maintain 20% growth through larger pack sizes and new categories rather than a price war.
Coca-Cola’s Alpha Score stands at 45 out of 100, classified as Mixed, within the Consumer Staples sector. More details are available on the KO stock page.
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