ThaiNamthip appoints new board chairman
ThaiNamthip, the largest bottling partner of the Coca-Cola Company in Thailand, yesterday announced that its board of directors had appointed Pornwut Sarasin as its chairman, promoting him from his current position of vice chairman.
It also voted to appoint Pong Sarasin, the former chairman of the board, to become honorary chairman of ThaiNamthip.
Manuel Arroyo, president of the Asean business unit of the Coca-Cola Co, based in Bangkok, said: “We have seen in Thailand one of the most significant competitive turnarounds in our business history in the last few decades. Our partnership of almost 60 years in Thailand is a very special one.
“We very much welcome these two important appointments that recognise the strong performance of ThaiNamthip during the past several years and the doubling of its business since 2007.
“The Coca-Cola system is the leader of Thailand’s non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverage market as well as the leader of the sparkling-beverages category with 56.7-per-cent category share, as of June 2013.”
That figure is according to Nielsen Thailand’s 12-month rolling total from July 2012 to June this year.
The board of ThaiNamthip noted that Pornwut had been the primary force initiating the internationalisation of the company, extending its business reach, as a first step, into Laos. He has also been the key driver of the major modernisation and investments in the company’s supply chain and distribution capabilities in the past few years and these initiatives have been important contributors to Coca-Cola’s success, it said.
Pornwut said: “Our vision is to transform ThaiNamthip into a world-class bottling organisation, with the world’s most advanced manufacturing, distribution and selling know-how, technologies and work systems that will further improve our operational efficiency as well as make ThaiNamthip a most favoured workplace for our staff.
“We are committed to being the leader of the non-alcoholic beverage market, not only in Thailand but also across Southeast Asia.
“We have made major gains in efficiency by adopting completely new and unconventional ways in our distribution. In three years, these changes have increased logistics efficiency and asset utilisation by 50 per cent, reduced logistical costs and improved margins for the outlets that sell our products, making ThaiNamthip the preferred business partner for our customers,” he added.
The Coca-Cola system in Thailand this year announced an investment of more than Bt4 billion in the expansion of its production capabilities.
Thailand ranks as one of the fastest-growing markets in the world, with Coca-Cola brand volume growing by 27 per cent during the third quarter.
The Coca-Cola system in Thailand comprises Coca-Cola (Thailand) and its two bottling partners, ThaiNamthip and Haad Thip, producing, marketing and distributing more than 20 beverage products under eight brands.
The Thai sparkling-beverage category was estimated to be worth about Bt44 billion last year, while the non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverage market was worth around Bt169 billion, according to Nielsen.
