Coca-Cola Philippines is confident the company will emerge as a stronger and more agile organization as it weathers the storm brought by the new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Winn Everhart, Coca-Cola Philippines president and general manager, in a recent talk said the company has already prepared recovery strategies going forward, as it faces the next normal.
Everhart said Coca-Cola has been seeing more at-home consumption due to the quarantine imposition, where people are made to stay at home. He also took notice of how people in the A and B market segments are still spending like before.
The markets hardest hit by the pandemic, Everhart observes, are their largest customers, what with the forced closure of establishments and restaurants. Also affected are the C, D, and E segments which are spending less.
Seeing a pent-up demand for their products locally, Everhart remains confident that the Philippines is one of their most resilient markets.
“Now more than ever, it’s our turn to make a difference here in the Philippines. We see a great opportunity for us to emerge stronger, whether it’s through our e-commerce platform, or our digital platform, even thinking through our product innovation, and what those new consumer needs are. We believe that everything will be just as bright as it was before.”
“Working for a company with a long, proud history as Coca-Cola, one of the things we do have on our side is our ability to look back through time and see how our business has performed coming out of a crisis,” Everhart said. “One of the things we’ve consistently seen is that if we focus on the consumer, if we focus on their needs, we see that we do emerge stronger. In fact, even the ecosystem where we operate seems to operate at an even higher rate.”
Everhart shared how the Refresh the World, Make a Difference mission of Coca-Cola has gained even more relevance and deeper meaning due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stressing the company has always prioritized the welfare of its people and the communities where the company operates, Everhart said all 15,000 associates working in the Coca-Cola system — in plants, distribution centers, and those working from home — continued their operations, helping ensure that their customers are being refreshed and have access to their well-loved products.
Coca-Cola has strengthened its presence in digital space and helps restart small businesses, providing them with access to resources and necessary training.
Coca-Cola has also ramped up its relief efforts in light of COVID-19, where a total of over 600,000 liters of beverages have been distributed to different institutions and marginalized communities, close to 175,000 personal protective equipment (PPEs) have been provided to more than 51,000 plus frontliners, while 39,000 food packs have helped address hunger needs to the most vulnerable.
