Cobra bites off 76% of Iceberg

MUMBAI: “This is like the NRI returning home. We are a British brand of Indian origin and we will start serving the Indian guzzlers too,” said Karan Bilimoria, chairman, Cobra Beer Ltd.

The company that started making beer even before liberalisation happened, and exported for seven years from Bangalore to United Kingdom is finally back to India, almost a decade later, growing fast and gaining market share.

In its attempt to challenge brewing industry heavyweights for a slice of India’s “big potential” beer market, the first major move has been made — Cobra Beer has acquired its first brewery in the country and is scouting for more.

It has acquired 76% stake in Iceberg Industries Ltd in Bihar. This would be the first acquisition although Cobra Beer is also into contractual tie-ups with six other breweries in the country. Iceberg currently has manufacturing capacity of 3million cases which will be doubled in a year.

Bilimoria said, “We will be starting with our greenfield plans very soon. We are looking at three breweries in the next couple of years, one each in Haryana or Punjab, Hyderabad and West Bengal.” The company has set aside $50 million for its India plans.

Targeting a 10% market share with 20 million cases sales by 2012, Bilimoria is confident of overtaking Fosters within three years.

s_tanvi@dnaindia.net