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Coca-Cola India is extending brand Limca to the sports hydration segment with the launch of Limca Sportz. This marks the homegrown brand’s first-ever extension and also expands the brand’s presence in the non-sparkling space. It will also be the official sports drink brand for the upcoming ICC World Cup T20 to be played in Australia.
As part of a long-term partnership, the company has roped in Olympic Champion Neeraj Chopra as the brand ambassador for Limca Sportz. It will roll out an integrated marketing campaign with the tagline #RukkMat for the glucose-and-electrolytes based drink.
Speaking at a virtual conference on Monday, Arnab Roy, VP and Head - Marketing, Coca-Cola - India and South-West Asia, said, “Limca is one of the oldest brands in our portfolio and this is its 51st year. This has been one of the most untapped brands of our portfolio. As we looked at the brand’s next phase of growth, we decided to extend the brand to the rehydration and rejuvenation space. Our foray in the sports hydration category also comes at a time when more and more consumers are adopting an active lifestyle in the country.“
Roy added that the company is also working on other extensions of the brand which could be launched over the next 12-18 months.
Limca Sportz is being initially launched in the Delhi-NCR region. “We will take it to other markets such as Bangalore, Chennai, West Bengal, Mumbai, Pune, and cities in Andhra Pradesh/Telangana starting September. This year, we will pilot the new product and plan for a wider distribution in 2023. We will be leveraging our existing strong distribution system with our bottling partners and will also experiment with some new channels to reach out to the target consumers,” Roy said.
Broad marketing strategy
As part of the broad marketing strategy, Limca Sports will be associated with key sporting events including the upcoming ICC World Cup T20, he pointed out.
“We will continue to expand the low-sugar and zero-sugar portfolio, which is growing very fast for us. The launch of Limca Sportz is also in line with this strategy as it is a low-sugar product,” Roy added.
Coca-Cola said that the June quarter was its best quarter in India in terms of volume growth. Asked about expectations for the second half, Roy said, “The expectations are very high as this will be the first festival season post-Covid when consumers are expected to come out and celebrate without any constraints. We are looking at the strong double-digit growth to continue. We have had a very good year so far and we hope to continue this momentum.”
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