Maaza becomes Coca-Cola's 3rd billion-dollar brand in India

Coca-Cola Company has announced its fiscal Year 2024 and December quarter results on Tuesday. According to the soft drink giant, Maaza has become the company's third billion-dollar brand in India after Thums Up (in 2021) and Sprite (in 2022). Globally, Mazza is Coca-Cola's 30th billion-dollar brand.

During the earning call, CEO of The Coca-Cola Company, James Quincey said, "In India, our business rebounded nicely during the quarter (December quarter), and we grew volume. We recruited consumers with innovative marketing campaigns...And Maaza is now our 30th billion dollar brand".

Hindustan Coca-Cola Holdings Pvt Ltd (HCCH), the parent of its company-owned bottling arm, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages sold a 40 percent stake to Jubilant Bhartia Group

The beverage major said that during the year ended December 31, 2024, the company recorded net gains of $303 million, related to the refranchising of bottling operations in Rajasthan, Bihar, North-East, and parts of West Bengal to its independent bottlers.

"The refranchising program that we've had in place continues to move ahead. And India is no different from other parts of the world. We look for a certain profile of partner, those who are as ambitious as we are to capture the opportunity, who have the capital, and who have the ability to build capability over time. And we believe that our new partner there ticks the box very handsomely on all of these attributes. So you can just think of it as another chapter in the refranchising program, not just for India but for those remaining in our portfolio. And the Indian market has got a tremendous amount of runway ahead. The environment there is pretty vibrant, tremendously competitive set. And we believe that the Jubilant Group coming in is going to add tremendously to our abilities to continue to step change our execution in the marketplace," John Murphy, President and Chief Financial Officer of The Coca-Cola Company said.

Coca-Cola Company's net revenues increased 6% to $11.5 billion in the December quarter. For the full year, net revenues grew 3% to $47.1 billion. For the quarter, operating margin was 23.5% versus 21.0% in the prior year.

Volumes in the sparkling drinks segment, such as Sprite, returned to growth in the fourth quarter, rising 2%, after being flat in the prior quarter.