Vietnam third largest market for Hong Kong-based Coca-Cola bottler

Hong Kong-based Swire Pacific, a Coca-Cola bottler, says Vietnam sales of 155 million unit cases in 2023 made the country the company’s third largest market in the world.

The first two were China (1,394 million unit cases) and the U.S. (336 million). One unit case consists of 24 eight-ounce servings.

Its wholly-owned subsidiary, Swire Coca-Cola, completed acquisition of the Coca-Cola franchise in Vietnam last year, Swire Pacific said.

In terms of per capita consumption, Vietnam’s figure was 37 unit cases, the lowest of all six markets managed by Swire Coca-Cola. The U.S. topped per capita consumption with 260 unit cases, followed by Hong Kong with 199, Taiwan with 70, mainland China with 48 and Cambodia with 40.

Swire Coca-Cola said Vietnam’s performance was strong regardless of slower economic growth.

The company said it anticipated the franchise business in Vietnam to deliver steady profits. It also expected the strategic acquisition of the bottling operations in Thailand and Laos to have positive impacts soon.

Swire Pacific Ltd. completed its purchase of the entire Coca-Cola bottling subsidiary in Vietnam in January 2023, marking the Hong Kong conglomerate’s expansion into the Southeast Asian beverages market.

The Coca-Cola Company earned $439 million from refranchising its bottling operations in Vietnam in 2023, the beverage giant said in a performance review.

Swire Coca-Cola posted revenues of HKD1,856 million ($237.4 million) from its Vietnam operations in the first half of 2023. In that period, its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in Vietnam reached HKD263 million ($33.65 million).