Lalitha Srinivasan

Posted: Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 2326 hrs IST

Updated: Wednesday, May 19, 2010 at 0149 hrs IST

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Mumbai: The battle has begun in the packaged water industry in the country. To take on rivals
in this sector, PepsiCo India is drawing up a fresh game plan which includes, investment in
capacity enhancement, packaging initiatives and below-the-line activities to pump up volumes in
the over-crowded category. Meanwhile, swadeshi major Parle Agro is extending the
manufacturing facility for Bailley from 29 to 60 plants this year. While swadeshi major Bisleri
International is beefing up its distribution, manufacturing and marketing operations, Coca-Cola
India is sharpening its focus on packaging initiatives of Kinley to woo new consumes. In
essence, the packaged water industry in India will soon witness a major tussle between swadeshi
and videshi players to gain market and mind share.

On PepsiCo’s strategy, PepsiCo India business head (juices & juice drinks) Homi Battiwala said,
“We are increasing capacity in our existing manufacturing plants. As part of our packaging
strategy, we are piloting a new project in Tamil Nadu. We are test marketing 300 ml packs of
Aquafina priced at Rs 5 in Tamil Nadu to start with.”

With its new packaging strategy, PepsiCo is also targeting rural audience across the country.
“With lower price point of Aquafina (Rs 5) we are looking at both rural and urban markets to
drive volumes. Our marketing focus is on below-the-line activities to promote our brand in
competitive markets,” he added. With increasing competition, this sector will register a robust
growth in 2010, predict industry analysts. Currently, the industry is growing at the rate of 45%.
The major players in this sector include Coke’s Kinley, PepsiCo’s Aquafina, Bisleri international
and Parle Agro’s Bailley among others.
Meanwhile, Parle Agro is extending its distribution network
by 30% this summer. Currently, Bailley has a national
presence in 5 lakh retail outlets across the country. “We plan
to increase manufacturing plants for Bailley from 29 to 60,
presently 40 plants are operational and few more will be
ready for operations over the next few months,” informed
Nadia Chauhan, joint managing director of Parle Agro.

According to Chauhan, the new plants will cater to retail

segment as well as bulk jar segments.” Our focus is on high
impact visibility at retail spaces. We are also doing localised
activities in retail spaces. Bailley will be available in King
Long Buses with BEST’s new ‘in-vehicle retail’ venture,” she explained. Cashing in on the
popularity of cricket matches in India, Bisleri...