Ajegroup, commonly known as AJE, is a Peruvian multinational company dedicated to the manufacture, distribution and sale of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. The company was founded by the Añaños-Jerí Family in 1988 in

Ayacucho Ayacucho (, qu, Ayak'uchu) is the capital city of Ayacucho Region and of Huamanga Province, Ayacucho Region, Peru. During the Inca Empire and Viceroyalty of Peru periods the city was known by the name of Huamanga (Quechua: Wamanga), and it c ...

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

. It is known for its flagship products

Kola Real Kola Real ("Royal Cola" or "Real Cola") is one of the most popular brands of Ajegroup,Big Cola Kola Real ("Royal Cola" or "Real Cola") is one of the most popular brands of Ajegroup, Besides

and Mexico, Ajegroup also has operations in Brazil, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nigeria, Guatemala, Honduras, India,http://www.livinginperu.com/news/14123 Peru's Ajegroup begins operations in India Indonesia, Thailand, Venezuela, Vietnam, and Egypt. Its portfolio includes beverages, juices, nectars, light beverages, bottled natural water, dairy and beer. It manages 17 trademarks in 48 different presentations of PET and glass bottles, and also cans.

History

Ajegroup began in the late 1980s by the Añaños family in Ayacucho, Peru during the Peru's military and terrorist conflict. This situation did not allow many vehicles to access the area where the family lived and many traditional soft drink brands were not available to the customers in the area. The Añaños family saw this as a business opportunity and they developed

Kola Real Kola Real ("Royal Cola" or "Real Cola") is one of the most popular brands of Ajegroup,Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

and

Pepsi Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by PepsiCo. Originally created and developed in 1893 by Caleb Bradham and introduced as Brad's Drink, it was renamed as Pepsi-Cola in 1898, and then shortened to Pepsi in 1961. History Pepsi was ...

Strategy

Ajegroup employs certain strategies to help maintain its low cost economic plan. Ajegroup has bottling plants in Huejotzingo, Monterrey, and Guadalajara. The largest of the plants is in Huejotzingo, where production lines run for 24 hours a day, six days a week. Ajegroup therefore produces its own plastic bottles, which provides a low-cost alternative to glass returnable bottles and has helped brands like Big Cola compete with bigger names like Pepsi and Coca-Cola. Ajegroup also utilizes lean staffing to cut costs, and modern equipment and kaizen, or continuous improvement, to help reduce the number of workers on each of the Huejotzingo plant's seven production lines to eight, which is fewer than half that of a typical bottling facility. Ajegroup also gives deliveries to independent truckers rather than employing their own fleet of trucks and drivers, saving money on distribution. This, in addition to their minimal advertising technique, further reduces its costs. Ajegroup has had few television and billboard ads, and primarily relies on word of mouth to find customers.

Latin America

After 19 years of business AJE finally entered the market in Lima in 1999 by employing a low price strategy, keeping all products approximately 25% cheaper than competitors. The first expansion outside of Peru was into Venezuela, followed by Mexico, Ecuador, Colombia and then Brazil. In 2007, Ajegroup entered the alcohol market. It launched its beer business in Peru, later expanding to Mexico and Colombia. In 2011, Ajegroup took out their first bond, worth 200 million US dollars to finance future growth.

Asia

Ajegroup entered the Asian market in 2006 beginning with Thailand, which remains the center of Asian operations with Soren Lauridsen as Ajegroup's regional director for Asia and managing director of Aje Thailand since 2016. Ajegroup officially launched its flagship no-caffeine cola brand, Big Cola as a soft launch in December 2010 in Mumbai, India. They strategically made ties with the release of the Sony Pictures movie, 'The Amazing Spider-Man', in theaters. Big Cola launched limited editions of The Amazing Spider-Man bottles in three flavors until August 2012. According to Sorin Voinea, Director of Marketing (Asia Pacific), Ajegroup doesn't have intentions of necessarily competing with Coca-Cola and Pepsi, but more so, to follow their accomplishments. Big Cola is not only differentiating themselves through alternative methods of endorsement but also with being caffeine-free and having lower prices. While some are skeptical that Big Cola will stand out, Ajegroup's Sorin Voinea believes that their product has enough of its own identity to be successful in the Indian soft drink market. Devendra Chawla, president of the food & fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), says that the response to the brand has been good at Big Bazaar. “It is available at Big Bazaar in Mumbai and has done pretty well." Part of Ajegroup's success in countries like Thailand and Indonesia is due to the exclusive licensing agreement between the company and the

English Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and ...

to promote in six countries across Asia (India, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia) for 2 years.

Africa

In 2015 Ajegroup started expansion into Africa via Nigerian subsidiary AJEast Nigeria Limited led by Theo Williams, Country Manager Ajegroup. Despite strong opposition from entrenched brands like

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

and

, the initial capital investment into Nigeria was around N5 billion. In 2018 Duet Private Equity Limited announced a $50 million investment in AJEast. The investment led by Henry Gabay, CIO at Duet, is earmarked for expansion into additional African countries and increased market share in middle-income households in Nigeria and select West African markets.

Products

BIG Cola Kola Real ("Royal Cola" or "Real Cola") is one of the most popular brands of Ajegroup,bottled water Bottled water is drinking water (e.g., well water, distilled water, mineral water, or spring water) packaged in plastic or glass water bottles. Bottled water may be carbonated or not. Sizes range from small single serving bottles to large car ...

owned by the Ajegroup and sold in Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela and Colombia. Cielo is sold in glass bottles of 400 ml and

PET A pet, or companion animal, is an animal kept primarily for a person's company or entertainment rather than as a working animal, livestock, or a laboratory animal. Popular pets are often considered to have attractive appearances, intelligence, ...

bottles of 625 ml, 2-litre, 2.5-litre and 7-litre. *Free World *Free World ''Light'' *Pulp *Oro *Cifrut *First *Sporade *Citrus Punch *Free Tea *Cerveza Franca *Cerveza Caral – Peruvian brand of beer owned by AJE. It's the company's second brand on the beer market after

Franca Franca is a municipality in the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, Brazil. The city is located in the northeastern portion of the state, distant 401 km (249 mi) from the state capital (São Paulo), and 676 km (420 mi) from Brasília, Brasil ...

. *Club Especial *INDIA*India *AJEPER Peru *AJEVEN Venezuela *AJETHAI Thailand *AJEBRAS Brazil *AJECUADOR Ecuador *AJECEN Costa Rica *AJEMEX Mexico *AJEMAYA Guatemala *Volt - Peruvian brand of energy drinks. Includes Volt Ginseng, Volt Maca, Volt Focus, Volt Green, Volt Coca, and Volt Agave.

References

External links

AJE web site

Kola Real Takes on Coca-ColaIn Mexico, Big Cola is the real thing Soft drinks Ajeven invests US$1.5 million to expand production in VenezuelaPeru's Franca beer invests $6 million in the U.S. and EuropePeru’s Ajegroup to start operations in Brazil and India
{{Beers of Peru Beer in Peru Companies based in Lima Multinational companies Drink companies of Peru Food and drink companies established in 1988 *