Cola Wars Next Front: India

Flag of India in the shape of India

With business growth rates in emerging markets four to five times larger than in the United States and Europe, PepsiCo and Coca Cola are ratcheting up their marketing war machines for battle in these regions. Pepsi put India near the top of its list for market push, promising to invest $5.2 billion in the world’s second-most populous nation by 2020. While those funds are earmarked for ramping up manufacturing capacity and new product delivery, it’s obvious that the real goal is to distance itself from Coke in the country. When you consider that Pepsi received $65.5 billion in revenue from countries outside of the United States, a $5.2 billion investment in India may be just the beginning — an idea that independent investors should keep in mind for the long term.

Wayne Ellis

Wayne Ellis has been involved in the financial publishing industry for more than 15 years. During that time, he has helped to edit, to market and to launch products and services for Ernst & Young, LLC, Fidelity Investments, Agora, LLC, and Eagle Financial Publications. He currently puts his broad-based experience and industry expertise to use as a contributing writer for Eagle Financial Publications. He also is a graduate of Arizona State University.