Babajide Okeowo
A long drawn battle to control the lucrative carbonated soda (soft drink) market in Nigeria estimated at over N120 billion annually is at present raging between the big international bottlers, Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) Plc, makers of Coca Cola and PepsiCo, producers of Pepsi Cola brands, AJE Group producer of Big Cola on one side and a small but very efficient indigenous soft drink producer, Rite Foods Limited, makers of the popular Bigi Cola.
With the emergence of Bigi Cola, the battle of who controls the lucrative soft drink market has taken the “cola war” a notch higher as the brands jostle for greater market share. The sudden surge of Bigi cola has unsettled the Nigerian soft drinks market, usually dominated by the international companies, NBC plc and PepsiCo, thereby breaking the duopoly enjoyed by the two giants.
The Nigerian Xpress Intelligence Unit relying on usually dependable sources revealed an unusual unease in the marketing departments of the two big international companies over the threat of the small companies and their sudden surge into reckoning.
Take for instance the experience of this reporter this hot Monday afternoon, as he was in a bus going from Kollington Area of Alagbado in Lagos to Ikeja, and seated next to a gentleman who later identified himself as Lekan Shadare.
As we approached Iyana-Ipaja, the co-passenger hollered at a young boy selling carbonated soft drinks popularly called “minerals” in local parlance and ordered a cold bottle of Bigi Cola, took a long swig from it, screwed the lid back on and went back to fiddling with his phone.
Something caught this reporter’s attention as I noticed that he took Bigi Cola from the boy’s basket despite that the boy had Pepsi and Coca-Cola, which ironically would have been my own choice. Unable to hold my curiosity further, I engaged him. Why Bigi and not the others I asked?
He took a long look at me and afterward replied, “Bigi is bigger, and cheaper and has a kind of unique taste that is more satisfying, he replied casually. Not satisfied, I engaged him further. “But Pepsi and Coke are equally 60cl and the same price, I challenged him.
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Beginning to warm up to me, he replied “Is it not because Big Cola and Bigi made their own 65cl and 60cl that they were forced to make theirs 60 cl also? He countered back. “Besides, the main Coke 60 cl pet bottle is not N100, its N150, it’s their zero coke that they sell for N100, who wants to drink zero coke? I prefer the main cola, and thank God for Bigi, I can get more value for my money,” he said before taking another gulp of his drink.
The Cola war and the “more for less strategy”
A recent market survey revealed that many people believe that Coca-Cola from the stables of the Nigerian Bottling Company Plc and Pepsi are losing their market strength, share and control due to the emergence of Big Cola from the stables of AJE Group an international conglomerate and lately Bigi from the stables of Rite Foods Limited, a wholly indigenous company.
A few years before Bigi, Big Cola had strategically penetrated the market and broken the duopoly previously enjoyed by Coca-Cola and Pepsi with “same price for increased bottle size” strategy. This strategy paid off for the company as it invariably attracted patronage, because ‘consumers want more for less.’
Not wanting to be outdone, Pepsi also introduced the“Pepsi Long Throat Bottle”in an effort to gain market share, a strategy that also worked magic for them.
And in July 2016, Bigi Cola also made its debut into the Cola market with a 60cl introductory offer, and the product has gained acceptance with retailers and consumers alike, if their testimonies are anything to go by.
According to Mrs. Aminat, a retailer of the Cola product, Bigi Cola is doing well in the market. The reasons the product is doing well are the size and price.
In her words, “a carton of Bigi Cola goes for about N850 while Pepsi goes for N950 and Coca-Cola goes for N1200, so, if I buy Bigi Cola and I buy ice block of N100, I make a gain of N250 on a pack, since Bigi Cola gives me more profit, that is why I settle for Bigi Cola.”
When asked if the product actually sells that much, she replied in the affirmative. “Yes o, people are buying Bigi, you know Coke is even more expensive,” she said as a matter of fact.
Her position is also corroborated by Femi Fadoju who claims he doesn’t even bother himself looking for other brands. Everywhere you turn, Bigi Cola is in your face. The product is everywhere, so, I just ask for a bottle of Bigi Cola anytime I want to take the drink, he said. Speaking further, he said, “you know everybody wants something extra. That introductory twenty percent extra free offer was a game changer.”
According to Lekan Ajisafe, the biggest mistake Coca-Cola made was the jacking up of the price of its products with the introduction of “Solo” and “Bigger Boy” for different categories of consumers.
“Apparently, they thought that they are so invincible, while other brands were offering more for less, they chose to offer less for more and it boomeranged in their face and they are now playing catch-up in a market they ought to be dominating,” he criticised.
Distributors react
A mega distributor of the cola products, who simply wants to be identified as Madam Bridget with her warehouse located at Ojodu Berger axis of Lagos confided in The Nigerian Xpress that Bigi Cola is doing well in the market and is taking a huge chunk of the market.
“Take a look at my warehouse, I have a larger stock of Bigi Cola compared to Pepsi and Coca-Cola, the reason is that most of the retailers prefer to buy Bigi because, according to them, that is what the consumers want to buy. The volume of demand for Coca-Cola and Pepsi has also dropped considerably due to the threat of Bigi Cola, she said.
This position was shot down by Dami, a distributor with one of NBC’s Managed Distributor Partners, MDPs located on Iju Ishaga Road.
According to him, Coca-Cola still remains the brand to beat. According to him, “quality products will always do well in the market, Coca-Cola is an international brand with decades of experience and has come to stay. Once a product is accepted by consumers, repeat purchase is inevitable. That is what a company like Coca-Cola has enjoyed over the years. If you go to parties, social gatherings what you will find on the table is Coca-Cola, so, what are we now saying?” he asked rhetorically.
Speaking further, Dami told The Nigeria Xpress that distributors and wholesalers still prefer Coca-Cola to other brands because of the distribution capacity and add-ons that the product gives to their distributors.
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Right now, do you know that Coca-Cola has given the highest number of chillers (coolers and refrigerators), to our customers which aids the sales of our products across the country? he asked.
He also confided in this newspaper that NBC is the first company to open the marketing floor for different levels of dealers to help in capturing target markets at different levels. Some of these dealers are known as Managed Proximity Dealers, MPD, Managed Distributors Partners, MDP’s who are the NBC open market operators.
In a counter-reaction, Madam Bridget also revealed that the waiting time to get Bigi Cola order is considerably shorter compared to other products.
“Most times, when you make an order for Bigi Cola, within a day, you already have your products and customers don’t have to wait for so long to get their products,” she said.
Coca-Cola bounces back with ‘Mama the Mama’
In a bid to take back some of the market shares lost to other brands, Coca-Cola recently launched the Mama the Mama campaign. According to the Franchise Marketing Manager of NBC, Gbolahan Sanni, “Mama is a family sized, 1Litre bottle, of the nation’s favourite beverage, priced at the refreshingly affordable price of N200, as part of Coca Cola’s commitment to fostering intimacy, sharing, and happiness in the Nigerian family,” he had said at the launch of the product a few weeks ago.
As the ‘the Cola War’ rages on, dealers, retailers, and consumers are sitting back with a big smile on their faces, after all, it is to their benefits as they will get more value for money.