Right now, there is a hot battle between Bigi drinks and other soft drinks in Nigeria’s soft drink market. As you read this, the likes of Pepsi, Coca Cola, and others are facing a Big bottle. Almost everywhere you go, the demand for Bigi drinks is constantly increasing, especially in those remote areas in Nigeria.
Presently, many parties are not complete without Bigi Drinks, made by Rite Foods. This became evident when the relatively new entrant gained more strength where others who attempted to give the market giants, Coca-Cola and Pepsi failed.
Before now, it has always been Coke, Pepsi, Fanta, Mirinda, Sprite and Seven Up, but Bigi drinks which include Apple, Cola, Orange, Soda and Lemon-Lime flavours, gradually crept into the market and it looks like they have come to stay. The carbonated soft drink market commands a unique hold in the food and beverage sector in the Nigerian economy. Despite the huge popularity of the juice and still drink market, the unique tasting appeals of carbonated soft drinks and its many arrays of flavours have always been a strength other drinks cannot match.
It is estimated that there are over 35 million daily drinkers of carbonated soft drinks in Nigeria representing about 19.2% of the country population. The Nigeria carbonated drink market is worth $4.8 billion per year in average consumption pattern. Sales of carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) in Nigeria continue to rise, with fierce competition among players for supremacy in the marketplace.
The Nigerian soft drink market has big players and the market has witnessed quite some growth. In 2016 and 2017, there was a decline in the growth, but last year, there was a nine per cent growth in the market. Another interesting dynamic to the soft drink market is that we have begun to see a very strong shift from traditional returnable glass bottles (RGBs) to plastic (PET) bottles. You will recall in the last 60 years, RGBs have been in Nigeria. But we have seen a very significant shift in Nigeria where people have moved away from RGBs to plastic bottles. So, plastic bottles today drive a big chunk of the market.
It is this noticeable changes and stiff competition among the market leaders and the so-called laggards that made City People’s Brands & Products carry out a market survey in order to understand the variables that determine market shares and how the different brands are faring.
PRICE STRATEGY
A recent market survey conducted by City People’s Brands & Products revealed that any brand that controls the price of the soft drink market, without content reduction, would always have a stronger hold on consumers and the ability to induce them to switch brand loyalty. Bigi Cola, which is packed in a 500ml bottle, has seven variants; Bigi Cola, Orange, Lemon-Lime and Apple, etc. Bigi Cola is riding on pricing, the same strategy deployed by Big Cola to penetrate the soft drink market when it newly came. A carton price of PET bottle (50cl) of Bigi-Cola is N950, Pepsi-Cola sells for N1, 050 and Coca Cola for N1, 150. While the retail price of a 50cl bottle of Bigi-Cola, Big Cola and Pepsi is N100, Coca-Cola sells for N120. While some popular brands such as Coca Cola and Pepsi are leaders in the high-growth market; others are dominant in the low-growth market.
Despite increasing competition, Coca Cola and Pepsi still hold tenaciously to the leadership position in the soda market, having successfully shrugged off challenges from competitors with a combination of product quality, relentless consumer engagement and aggressive advertising. These marketing campaigns were a response to increasingly tough competition from players such as Aje, which saw its Big Cola brand gain sales share since its launch in 2015, due to competitive pricing.
Brands&Products equally discovered that there were limited product launches in 2017 as companies struggled with the negative impact of economic stagnation. The few new launches focused on refreshing packaging or maintaining stable prices through lower pack sizes.
CONSUMERS’ VIEW
Nnamdi Ibeabuchi a businessman, said: “I have always loved coke because it’s always refreshing especially in the hot sun. But sometimes, I alternate with Pepsi. CocaCola has come to stay though.” Ademola Olamoyesan, a banker said: “For me, I enjoy both Coke and Pepsi because they are almost the same. “Right now, I go for Bigi, I am trying it out,” said Nnena Benson, a consumer who is also based in Lagos. A small scale seller named Adeola Ogunnaike, who sells in Oshodi said: “I sell sausage roll with soft drinks and people request for Bigi Cola and Bigi Apple more because they believe particularly that Bigi Apple soothes their body. For me, I think this is as a result of choice, but that does not mean that other brands are neglected.”
DISTRIBUTORS REACT
A distributor, whose shop located At Jakande Estate, Oke Afa, Isolo but would not want the company’s name mentioned said, she recently prefers to stock Bigi drinks because most it is now in high demand, may be “the reason I don’t know at the moment but as a relatively new entrant. Bigi Products are giving a big challenge to the Coke and Pepsi brands.” In my records, Bigi Cola is doing well. Consumers tend to like the taste of the product, likewise Pepsi and Big Cola. “In fact, these products have drawn a battle line in the market.”
Another distributor in Ikeja, who would also prefer to remain anonymous, revealed to Brands & Products the tough competition in the market. He said “as you can see. I have all the major soft drinks here but Coke, Pepsi and Bigi are the highest selling. When Bigi came out, I was reluctant to buy but the demand forced me to reduce my capital on other products and I used the reduction to invest in the products. I am happy I did that because it is relatively cheap and selling fast.”
EXPERTS’ VIEWS
A marketing professional, Joseph Igbantu of Orlicks Communications, said that poor economic conditions limited the growth prospects for most soft drinks in 2017, while the poor economy led to low purchasing power for consumers. Total sales volume are expected to grow well this year, even though Nigeria’s economy is not expected to grow faster as it continues recovering from the recession.
Mr Chinedum Okereke is the Managing Director of The La Casera Company Plc. He has over 28 years’ experience in the drink industry, spanning 28 countries of the world. He joined La Casera in 2018 and he also had his view on the soft drink market in Nigeria.
“Projections are showing a low double-digit growth, which will be slightly higher than what we had last year. We are looking at about 15 per cent growth. We should also take into cognisance the socio-political environment in the country. Invariably, there are a couple of variables we need to consider, such as the elections. We also need to consider government policies in terms of devaluation. But all other things being equal and if there is no significant impact from these socio-political indices, agencies have projected a low double-digit growth, which is quite good for players in the industry” he said.
– Damilare Salami
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