Francisco Junior, Country Manager, Pernod Ricard
• Interview
How would you describe the evolution of Pernod Ricard in Mozambique so far?
Pernod Ricard Moçambique was established in 2015, and, as with any other new business, it had its challenges, especially as we started operating one year after the market entered a recession. We had to adapt our business plan to accommodate the new environment. Since 2015, Pernod Ricard has worked on strengthening its presence in the market with the right brands for its consumers. We also worked on strengthening our relationship with our customers who play a key role within our business to achieve our objectives. We went through three phases within this five-year period. The first phase was the implementation phase, where we put in place what we had designed on paper. These were our business plans and ambitions, along with starting to build a strong team and a better understanding of the environment we were playing in. With the knowledge we had acquired, we started on the second stage: to understand the needs of the market and consumers and bring in the right propositions and brands at the right moment. The third phase is consolidating our business in terms of where we stand today. This is where we implement innovations and establish the business as a key player and leader in spirits. Pernod Ricard is the leader in the market in terms of value proposition. We are also quickly rising to become the market leaders in terms of volume in spirits. That is a great achievement in five years.
What potential do you see in Mozambique?
Mozambique offers massive potential in several sectors. If we look at trends in the alcoholic beverages market over the last five years, in the beer segment there is a new brewery company entering and an expansion of Mozambique’s traditional brewery industry. There have also been investments in spirits. Within the sector, there is a huge dynamism because consumers are becoming more aware of what they want and are more demanding. In the wider economy, we are talking about an emerging middle class with strong purchasing power and a clear idea of the type and quality of products they want to consume. Pernod Ricard plays in the value-added category. As a French company, we have a premium products portfolio and that is where we can offer the best experience to consumers. We are creators of conviviality. For us, it is about the moments we create for our consumers—moments of joy, socializing, and conviviality. We established Pernod Ricard Mozambique as an affiliate in Africa because Africa is more than just the next Asia; it is growing faster than the rest of the world. By establishing our position here early and supporting this emerging growth, we will definitely be in a strong position to have our say in the market.
How has COVID-19 affected Pernod Ricard’s operations and workplace productivity?
The social distancing restrictions imposed by the government directly affected the alcoholic beverages sector in Mozambique. First, it affected the consumption trade, because bars and nightclubs were closed down, and they form the bulk of the business for us—up to 70% for some companies in the sector. The second impact was on consumer behavior. If customers cannot reach your products easily, naturally they migrate to products that are readily available or at some point they reduce consumption. However, the sector also saw this as an opportunity. Because there is no traditional e-commerce platform in Mozambique per se, what happened was a boom in delivery services and a massive increase in the use of social media to research about products. Social media platforms almost became e-commerce platforms. Pernod Ricard strengthened its presence in the digital space and built partnerships with delivery services to become more competitive and responsive to consumers’ needs. In the last few months, with the easing of some of the restrictions, the sector has been responding positively compared to the first three months of the pandemic. ✖