The
trader’ bodies in Tamil Nadu are again planning to boycott Pepsi
and Coca-Cola, asking its members to replace them with local drinks
and packaged products.
They
had earlier announced a boycott against these multinational companies
(MNCs) in 2017.
But
the MNCs overcame that and continued to sell their products
throughout the state.
Leaders
of the Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangankalin Peramaippu and the Federation
of Tamil Nadu Traders' Association say the products from the MNCs are
becoming a threat to the Indian traders.
PepsiCo
and Coca-Cola refused to comment on the move.
The
soft drink market in Tamil Nadu is around 500,000 crates per day,
with each crate having 24 bottles, and almost 80 per cent of it is by
PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, say sources.
Nearly
three-and-a-half years after it invested $90 million in Ravi
Jaipuria-promoted Varun Beverages, the bottlers for beverage giant
Pepsi, private equity fund AION has decided to completely exit the
company.
In
a block deal, AION has sold its 4.5 per cent stake in the company at
Rs 850 a share, a slight premium over the stock’s closing price of
Rs 844.75 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Tuesday. According
to sources, this translates into a 25 per cent return on equity per
year in dollar terms, or 2x returns over the holding period. The fund
generated 2x on equity invested in the company. When contacted, Parth
Gandhi, senior partner and managing director of AION, declined to
comment on the transaction.
AION,
a joint venture between Apollo Global Management and ICICI Venture,
had invested $90 million in Varun Beverages — half of that in debt
and half in convertible debentures.
In
2016, Varun Beverages came up with a Rs 1,100-crore initial public
offering (IPO), which was subscribed 1.8 times at Rs 445 a share.
After the company was listed, AION sold its stake in various
tranches.
AION
has so far invested in a number of Indian companies, the latest being
Monett Ispat, the steel company it acquired as part of a consortium
with JSW through the insolvency route, paying Rs 2457 crore for the
deal. This year, it also acquired information technology (IT) and
back-office operations of InterGlobe Technologies, the Rahul Bhatia
company that runs IndiGo Airlines, for $230 million. In 2016, it also
bought — along with partners like former Genpact chief executive
Pramod Bhasin and GE commercial finance business head Anil Chawla —
the commercial lending and leasing business of GE Capital for $360
million.
Varun
Beverages, the flagship company of the Ravi Jaipuria group, in
February this year cemented its long-term relationship with PepsiCo.
