VBL to acquire PepsiCo franchise rights in South, West India

PepsiCo India's bottling partner Varun Beverages Monday said its board has approved plans to acquire franchise rights of the beverages and snacks major in South and West regions.

The board has approved the company's intent to enter into a binding agreement with PepsiCo India Holdings to acquire franchise rights in the two regions for a national bottling, sales and distribution footprint in seven states and five UTs, Varun Beverages Ltd (VBL) said in a regulatory filing.

Upon completion of these acquisitions, VBL will be a franchise of PepsiCo beverages business across 27 states and seven Union Territories (UTs), it added.

"The proposed acquisitions are in line with the company's strategy to expand into contiguous territories and will help to acquire greater scale, operational productivity and efficiency leading to higher revenues and profitable growth," it said.

VBL, however, did not disclose financial details of the proposed acquisitions.

Commenting on the development, VBL Chairman Ravi Jaipuria said: "Our franchising agreement, subject to receipt of necessary statutory approvals, in South and West regions will enable VBL to acquire a national bottling and sales footprint."
PepsiCo had then stated that North and East regions together accounted for 80 per cent of the juice market in India and VBL's contiguous reach would help it more than double the distribution reach in these states