Nestle‘s India achieved double-digit growth in the last year, leveraging existing capabilities and investing in new opportunities to create long-term value.
India has become the largest market for Nestle’s Maggi globally, with six billion servings of the product sold in the financial year 2023-24. For the chocolate wafer brand, Kit Kat, India ranks as the company’s second-largest market. The company attributes its success to a strategy focused on penetration and innovation, combined with disciplined resource allocation.
Innovation has played a significant role in Nestle India’s growth, with sales of innovative products increasing from 3% in 2018 to over 6% in 2023. This emphasis on new product development has helped the company maintain growth despite challenges such as escalating food inflation and volatile commodity prices, particularly in coffee and cocoa.
In addition to its strong domestic performance, Nestle’s export business from India has also shown robust growth. p
Recognizing India’s importance, Nestle is expanding its presence in the country. The company is currently setting up its tenth factory in Odisha and has committed to investing $1 billion between 2020 and 2025. This investment aims to develop new capabilities and expand existing ones, with a focus on sustained growth and innovation.
Recently, Nestle India addressed the issue of royalty payments to its parent company. After a proposal to increase the royalty rate was rejected by shareholders, the company decided to continue paying the existing rate of 4.5% of net sales. Nestle India‘s board noted that this royalty rate is comparatively lower than those paid by other multinational corporations operating in India.
