The Coca-Cola Company announced here on Thursday that it will continue to increase investment levels in China.
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Ahmet Bozer, president of Coca-Cola International, said during an interview that he expects the business to continue to grow for many years to come.
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Bozer said 4 billion U.S. dollars of investment will be added by 2014 in China. And he explained that the investment is mixed with marketing assets like plants, transportation and retail outlets.
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According to the Coca-Cola chief, the company will open a new plant in Shijiazhuang, capital of north China's Hebei Province, in October.
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It is also working to develop the markets in China's second- and third- tier cities and its western areas.
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Those cities may be at a different economic stage of development, Bozer said, but they are expected to have great potential.
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As told by Bozer, Coca-Cola has been developing local partners and distribution systems to make the brand locally relevant.
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According to Bai Changbo, vice president of public affairs and communications for Coca-Cola Greater China, Chinese people now drink an average of 39 bottle of Coke per year, which is still much fewer than the 400 bottles consumed in the United States.
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"Thus, our products have broad growth space in China," Bai said.
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With that growth, Coca-Cola has to keep investing to satisfy the demand, Bai acknowledged.
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"We want to make China our largest beverage market soon," added Bozer.
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The first shipment of Coca-Cola cans was shipped to China in 1978, so this year marks the brand's 35th year in the country.
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"Our business in China is a mirror of the progress of its opening-up policy," said David Brooks, president of Coca-Cola Greater China and Korea.
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Coca-Cola used to make the argument to the Chinese government that foreign tourists had to have Coke if the country wanted them to come in, disclosed Brooks.
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The Chinese government approved Coca-Cola's operation in the country in 1979.
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Now, the beverage giant has established 42 plants all over China, with a total investment of 5 billion U.S. dollars, and 50,000 Chinese local employees.