Marketing Cola in India
The post-liberalization period in India saw the comeback of cola but Pepsi had already
beaten Coca-Cola to the punch, creatively entering the market in the 1980’s in advance of
liberalization by way of a joint venture. As early as 1985, Pepsi tried to gain entry into India
and finally succeeded with the Pepsi Foods Limited Project in 1988, as a JV of PepsiCo,
Punjab government-owned Punjab Agro Industrial Corporation (PAIC), and Voltas India
Limited. Pepsi was marketed and sold as Lehar Pepsi until 1991 when the use of foreign
brands was allowed under the new economic policy and Pepsi ultimately bought out its
partners, becoming a fully-owned subsidiary and ending the JV relationship in 1994.
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While the joint venture was only marginally successful in its own right, it allowed Pepsi to
gain precious early experience with the Indian market and also served as an introduction of
the Pepsi brand to the Indian consumer such that it was well-poised to reap the benefits when
liberalization came. Though Coke benefited from Pepsi creating demand and developing the
market, Pepsi’s head-start gave Coke a disadvantage in the mind of the consumer. Pepsi’s
appeal focused on youth and when Coke entered India in 1993 and approached the market
selling an American way of life, it failed to resonate as expected.
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2001 Marketing Strategy
Coca-Cola CEO Douglas Daft set the direction for the next generation of success for his
global brand with a “Think local, act local” mantra. Recognizing that a single global strategy