Mondelēz says India is key market to achieving $1bn e-commerce sales target
“We’re building an industry-leading e-commerce snacks business, targeting at least $1bn in revenue globally by 2020,” said Ganesh Kashyap, senior director of e-commerce growth platforms at Mondelēz. “We expect a third of it to come from our AMEA (Asia, Middle East and Africa) region.”
He previously told Economic Times that online sales would reach about 5% of Mondelēz India’s overall sales by 2020 from “less than 1% now.”
E-commerce plays ‘critical’ role
Some of the brands Mondelēz currently operates in India include internationally sold Oreo and Cadbury Dairy Milk, as well as those exclusive to the country such as Perk snacking chocolate and Bournvita Biscuits.
Kashyap said, “To be the best snacking company in the world, we know we need to sell our brands whenever and wherever consumers shop, and our e-commerce platform will play a critical role in this ambition.
“Consumption patterns are changing as key power shifts are redefining how consumers live, eat and shop. Wherever they are in the world, consumers are working longer hours and have longer commutes,” he explained. “This has a significant impact on how they eat, leading to more consumption between or in replacement of meals, and how they shop – less time to go to a physical store.”
“Social media and mobile platforms have become preferred access points, causing a seismic shift in the retail landscape,” Kashyap added.
Efforts to boost online sales
Mondelēz previously developed a partnership with India’s largest online marketplace, Amazon.in, to set up the country’s first virtual chocolate and sweet store, Kashyap told ConfectioneryNews.
“Working with key players like Snapdeal, Amazon or Big Basket, we’ve exclusively launched new products such as Bournvita Biscuits, Cadbury Dairy Milk Marvellous Creations and Cadbury Fuse online before hitting the traditional trade and modern stores,” he said.
More recently, the company also established its own retail portal. “We launched our first direct-to-consumer website ‘Cadbury Joy Deliveries’ where we go beyond the contemporary and traditional occasions to create newer gifting avenues for our consumers as well as for the corporates,” Kashyap continued.
Mondelēz’s CEO Irene Rosenfeld said during the company’s latest Q3 2017 earnings conference call that e-commerce would be a “key snacking channel” moving forward.
Globally, Mondelēz’s net revenue from e-commerce grew more than 40% during the quarter led by its Chinese business that “grew at twice the growth rate of the online market,” said Rosenfeld. “Our e-commerce investments [in India] continued to drive solid share gains.”
