How is the Latin American market performing?
Jorge López Dóriga: AJE began its operations 26 years ago in Peru and made its first incursion abroad in 1999 when we started operations in Venezuela. Since then, we have expanded to a number of other Latin American countries: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama. These markets are crucial for the success of our brands and business, and we have in general experienced significant growth in the carbonated and non-carbonated beverage sectors.
While some markets are more mature (eg in Mexico, the consumption of carbonated soft drinks in 2012 was 146 litres per person, second only to the US), others have a stronger potential for growth, as their consumption levels have only more recently started to grow significantly. For example, in Peru, where AJE is the market leader with its Cielo brand, the entire bottled water market has seen significant growth, increasing 20-fold over the past 10 years.