Coca-Cola India hails ‘sugar reduction strategy milestone’ with new Thums Up product

16-Apr-2018 - Last updated on 16-Apr-2018 at 01:30 GMT

Hoping to attract millennials, Coca-Cola India unveiled cans and PET bottles of the newly-launched Thums Up Charged No Sugar with illustrations of Marvel’s Thor, Iron Man, Hulk and Black Widow.

Coca-Cola India has launched the first no-sugar variant of a home-grown brand – Thums Up Charged No Sugar – with a leading executive claiming it is a “significant milestone in its sugar reduction strategy”.

The firm says this shows its commitment to promote moderation in consumption patterns and better health, in offering consumers regular, low-sugar and no-sugar options.

“Coca-Cola India is accelerating its strategic evolution to become a total beverage company by offering innovative and localised beverage choices to consumers. The launch of Thums Up Charged No Sugar not only marks the expansion of our product portfolio but also demonstrates our efforts to innovate products locally that meet changing consumer tastes and preferences,” said Ishteyaque Amjad, vice-president of public affairs & communication of Coca Cola India & South West Asia.

“This is a significant milestone for us in our sugar reduction strategy.”

Coca-Cola India launched Thums Up Charged at the end of last year. It is an energy drink variant of the popular 40-year-old Thums Up drink, with a higher caffeine content.

Said Vijay Parasuraman, vice-president of marketing of Coca-Cola India & South West Asia, “We are now eager to take the iconicity of this brand to the next level with Thums Up Charged No Sugar and recruit more consumers in our journey to make Thums Up the first home-grown billion-dollar beverage brand.

“The no-sugar, no-calorie variant is aimed at consumers who want to balance their sugar intake and enjoy their favourite drink as well. Additionally, we are supporting the brand by going beyond the traditional marketing practices and directly engaging with the consumers through interactive platforms and innovative formats.”

Hoping to deepen its engagement with millennials and youth, Coca-Cola India also unveiled cans and PET bottles of Thums Up Charged No Sugar featuring illustrations of Marvel’s Avengers Thor, Iron Man, Hulk and Black Widow.

Thumbs Up in Bangladesh

Coca-Cola has also recently launched Thums Up Charged in Bangladesh, as part of its 55th anniversary of operation in the country.

The Thums Up Charged 250 ml PET bottle is initially being rolled out in the key cities of Bangladesh at a price of Tk25 (US$0.30) and will soon be available countrywide.

Said T Krishnakumar, president of Coca-Cola India & South West Asia, “Coca-Cola, across the globe, is accelerating forward towards becoming a total beverage company by broadening its product portfolio and entering new product categories.

“This strategy of growing the portfolio while leveraging the strength of the core brands as its foundation will play a key role in accelerating growth going forward.

“The transformed strategy is grounded in giving the consumer more beverage choices and packages they want, for the occasions they want.

“In Bangladesh, we have identified a potential space for the Bangladesh youth — the need for recharge. The launch of Thums Up Charged addresses this with its unique strong taste, fizz and ingredients that will help in ‘charging you up’.”

Coca-Cola bought over Thums Up in 1993 to compete with Pepsi in the Indian beverages market. Despite competition, Thums Up remains India’s largest cola brand by far.

Euromonitor International data says Thums Up had a 15.4% market share in 2016.

Coca-Cola had earlier announced that it would be marketing Thumps Up to South Asian countries, such as Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka, by March.