Pernod Ricard, the French spirits giant behind brands such as Absolut, Chivas Regal, and Glenlivet, said today that India has displaced China as its largest market by volume and second-biggest by value. Jean Touboul, Managing Director of Pernod Ricard India (PRI), hailed this milestone underlined how important India had become for the company as a “growth engine”.
Net sales rose 6.1% in FY24 for Pernod Ricard India on the strength of consumer demand and premiumization trends in India’s whisky market. In fact, the company claims that India is the second-largest market for premium brands such as Glenlivet Scotch whisky and Jameson Irish whisky.
Touboul said that in India, premiumization is as much about value creation as it is about market expansion. “Our goal remains to create value by encouraging consumers to elevate their choices,” he said, adding this is a method that has been significantly contributing to India’s rise as a key market for Pernod Ricard.
An aggressive export plan is underway for Pernod Ricard. Its Indian business will leverage the country’s diaspora as it expands the Seagram’s whisky portfolio of Royal Stag, Blenders Pride, and Imperial Blue to 70 countries from 40. The exports will be supplemented by the company’s investment of €200 million in building the Asian continent’s biggest distillery in Nagpur, Maharashtra. The facility will help increase exports, particularly of Longitude 77, Pernod Ricard’s first Indian single malt whisky.
India now represents 12% of the company’s total worldwide revenues, with an overall CAGR of 8% over five years. The company was optimistic about the future as it looks for double-digit growth stemming from premiumization and innovation. Very recently, it introduced whiskies like Royal Stag Double Dark Peaty Whisky and Blenders Pride Four Elements Premium Whisky for catering to the evolving Indian customers’ taste buds.
As the Indian market matures, the company is also looking at the potential positives of the prospective UK-India Free Trade Agreement, which is likely to further boost Scotch whisky imports and Indian whisky exports.
swiftly growing prosperity and increasingly premium-conscious consumers have fully cemented the Indian marketplace as a cornerstone of Pernod Ricard’s global strategy.
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