Campa Cola is set to return after 23 years

Campa Cola, which once dominated the market with its soft drink, is planning a comeback. Reliance still has plenty of Diwali gifts left in the basket for the nation even after announcing the launch of Jio 5G by that holiday this year. According to sources, Delhi-based Pure Drinks Group has acquired the domestic soft drink brand Campa from Reliance Industries, which announced its entry into the FMCG sector earlier this week. Reliance Retail Ventures will introduce the deal to the general public and local markets around Diwali, according to sources familiar with the matter. The deal’s estimated value is around Rs 22 crore.

Reliance Retail, under the direction of Isha Ambani, is entering the FMCG market this year, and one of the company’s initial moves appears to be to engage in a battle with Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, the American cola giants that in 1990 slowly killed Campa. According to a news report in the Economic Times, Campa Cola will reportedly be introduced in three flavors—original, lemon, and orange—through Reliance Retail stores, JioMart, and the more than 15 lakh kiranas who purchase goods from Reliance’s B2B network.

After Coca-Cola and other multinational corporations, including IBM, were asked to leave the country in 1977 due to alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Regulations Act, the Pure Drinks Group, which also owns the Le Méridien hotel in Delhi, introduced Campa Cola. In actuality, the Pure Drinks Group was the sole licenced manufacturer and distributor of Coca-Cola in India from 1949 until today.

After 1977, Campa Cola became the preferred cold beverage in Delhi for roughly 15 years. The brand became popular right away. It was produced in more than 50 factories across the nation during its prime, including four in Delhi. The Moti Nagar factory in Delhi was the biggest, despite the fact that the CP factory was the oldest and most well-known, according to a former sales manager at Campa’s Shankar Market factory who asked to remain anonymous. The two additional factories were situated in Okhla and Najafgarh. Everything has been turned off.

By Subhechcha Ganguly