Port Elizabeth businessman, Phil Gutsche, has led his company, Coca Cola Sabco into a merger to create a new bottler that has its eye on Africa.
Coca Cola Sabco, in which Gutche Family Investments are the majority shareholders, merged with SABMiller and the US-based Coca Cola Company on Thursday, to form Coca Cola Beverages Africa.
The new business, which will be headquartered in South Africa, will serve 12 high-growth countries accounting for approximately 40 per cent of all Coca-Cola beverage volumes in Africa.
In a joint statement the companies said that Africa offers significant growth potential in beverages, underpinned by rising personal disposable income, a fast-growing population and increasing per capita consumption.
The statement says with more than 30 bottling plants and over 14 000 employees, Coca-Cola Beverages Africa will be the largest Coca-Cola bottler on the continent, with the scale, complementary capabilities and resources to capture and accelerate top-line growth.
