After a year full of progress and achievements, Nestle Pakistan recorded a growth in sales in the third quarter of 2019, that is, relative to the third quarter of 2018. This has been quite a praise-worthy accomplishment given the current inflation and macro-economic challenges.
The corporate giant changed approaches and worked endlessly to cater and focus on market demands, whereby releasing newer products. They also concentrated on judicious investments behind brands which bore fruit as Nestle saw a 3.4% sales growth.
However, the increased investments led to a decrease in the Net profit for the same period, by 36.7% to PKR 5.4 billion. This was primarily due to higher input and energy costs and the imposition of sales tax and federal excise duty on milk powders and beverages.
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Investments include the construction of a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant at Nestlé Pakistan’s Sheikhupura Factory, that was recently inaugurated. This plant will be directed to the production of Fruita Vital juices.
Nestle also continued its investments in the farming practices of mangoes amid growing concerns around the decline of mango growth noted this year in Pakistan. This was an extension of the Nestlé Chaunsa Project initiated in 2013, in partnership with the Agriculture Department Punjab. The initiative began with the aim to improve the livelihood of farmers within the Chaunsa Mango sector.
A total revenue of PKR 87 billion was recorded for the nine months ended Sept 30, 2019 – a decrease of 4.2% as compared to the same period last year. However, in the midst of an overall economic slowdown and pressure on disposable income, this quarter showed greater progress compared to the second quarter of 2019, which reported sales of PKR 57.7 billion during the half-year.
Read more: Nestlé invests millions on a new plant for Fruita Vitals!
Despite the tough economic environment, Nestle’s commitment to meeting consumer expectations seems commendable. The hard work to offer quality and value-added products while remaining focused on optimization of the value chain is the secret to a dedicated organization.