Coca-Cola to take Thums Up globally; sees India among top 5 market

KOLKATA: Coca-Cola announced it will be officially launching Thums Up in markets across South Asia by end of March. This will be the first step in what could amount to a global rollout of the brand.

While Thums Up is also manufactured in limited quantities the Middle East, to cater to the Indian diaspora, this is the first time it will be launched and marketed outside India, according to Coca-Cola India and South West Asia president, T Krishnakumar. The variant chosen for the global launch is the recently launched Thums Up Charged which has a higher proportion of caffeine and a taste identical to the original drink. Krishnakumar said,

“We pride ourselves in creating billion dollar brands and this is an opportunity for the first brand from India to get into that league.”


The team met the creator of Thums Up, Ramesh Chauhan, who sold the brand to Coca-Cola in 1993 to seek his blessings and wishes for the journey ahead, Krishnakumar added. Coca-Cola’s president – Asia Pacific, John Murphy said India was the 6th largest market for the brand and he expected it to become the fifth largest market – a position currently held by Japan – in the next few years.

In an interview with ET, he indicated the company was open to further acquisitions within India but stopped short of naming possible targets.