PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi spoke with FOX Business Network’s Cheryl Casone about the turmoil in the Egypt and how it is affecting their business. Nooyi said that “We are part of a society that is going through at a lot of change. You can be sure there will be some upheaval at some point.” She went on to say her priority is “to make sure our businesses are protected, our people are protected” and her concern for the country as a whole that Egypt is “going through whatever transition it is going through now in a peaceful way.”
Excerpts from the interview are below:
**MANDATORY CREDIT: FOX BUSINESS NETWORK**
On her concerns about the turmoil in Egypt:
“Anytime there is upheaval in a country we worry, especially if we have assets on the ground. We have a business there. But as we look across the world, at some point or another, there is some turmoil in some country. All we have to do is wait it out. These things have a finite time frame. During this period, we have to make sure our businesses are protected, our people are protected.”
On the safety of the people working for PepsiCo in Egypt:
“The safety of our people is paramount. Our people are all Egyptian. That’s one thing about PepsiCo in every country in which we do business, our employees are local. We are worried for them because we want to make sure the country is going through whatever transition it is going through now in a peaceful way.”
On concerns about being a global company in times of crisis:
“We are part of a society that is going through at a lot of change. You can be sure there will be some upheaval at some point. When you have a very young population and they are repressed, that’s also formula for disaster. Any time we do business in these countries, we make sure our portfolio is such that we don’t depend too much on countries where there could be political turmoil. Companies like ours are like little republics; we are big, we know how to operate in multiple countries, and we also know how to work the portfolio so if there is an upheaval in one country, we figure out how to protect our assets, and how to come back up once this upheaval passes through.”
On PepsiCo’s biggest consumers; young people:
“The young people in the Middle East and the Arab world, and South Asia, and Southeast Asia are a great source of business for us. A large portion of those countries being people less than 25 years old; that is our prime population. And whether they are protesting or not protesting, they are still drinking the Pepsi and eating Lays. You need sustenance before you go out there and protest.”
On whether global leaders should listen more to business leaders:
“Business is the engine of growth in almost every country in the world. I don’t know if the president of any country can be successful if they don’t have an open and honest dialogue with business in that country and invite ideas from business to see how to keep the country going. I don’t believe any president can afford to be removed from business.”
On the acquisition of Russian dairy products and fruit-juice maker OAO Wimm-Bill-Dann:
“We have been on a strategy to shift the portfolio to create a more balanced portfolio of fun for you, better for you, and good for your products. The Wimm-Bill-Damm acquisition is very important because it gives us a foxhole into the dairy business which is a protein source. Wimm-Bill-Dann is a terrific business by itself but it gives us a source of technology to build out the value added dairy business globally.”
On the Chinese market:
“The Chinese market is 1.3 billion people. There are decades of growth in the Chinese market. You cannot just export the American model to China. What we have to do is figure out the right model for China for the Chinese consumers.”
On the increase in commodity prices:
“This type of a commodity price escalation is not good, especially for people who are struggling. Companies like ours are used to these commodities cycles so we learn to manage, but I am not the low end consumer struggling to make ends meet.”
On the bringing healthy alternatives to their product mix:
“I think the consumer in the United States loves PepsiCo precisely for this reason; because we are offering them a wide variety of products. Doritos is not bad for you. Any product consumed in excess is bad for you. Everything has to be eaten in moderation.”
Excerpts from the interview are below:
**MANDATORY CREDIT: FOX BUSINESS NETWORK**
On her concerns about the turmoil in Egypt:
“Anytime there is upheaval in a country we worry, especially if we have assets on the ground. We have a business there. But as we look across the world, at some point or another, there is some turmoil in some country. All we have to do is wait it out. These things have a finite time frame. During this period, we have to make sure our businesses are protected, our people are protected.”
On the safety of the people working for PepsiCo in Egypt:
“The safety of our people is paramount. Our people are all Egyptian. That’s one thing about PepsiCo in every country in which we do business, our employees are local. We are worried for them because we want to make sure the country is going through whatever transition it is going through now in a peaceful way.”
On concerns about being a global company in times of crisis:
“We are part of a society that is going through at a lot of change. You can be sure there will be some upheaval at some point. When you have a very young population and they are repressed, that’s also formula for disaster. Any time we do business in these countries, we make sure our portfolio is such that we don’t depend too much on countries where there could be political turmoil. Companies like ours are like little republics; we are big, we know how to operate in multiple countries, and we also know how to work the portfolio so if there is an upheaval in one country, we figure out how to protect our assets, and how to come back up once this upheaval passes through.”
On PepsiCo’s biggest consumers; young people:
“The young people in the Middle East and the Arab world, and South Asia, and Southeast Asia are a great source of business for us. A large portion of those countries being people less than 25 years old; that is our prime population. And whether they are protesting or not protesting, they are still drinking the Pepsi and eating Lays. You need sustenance before you go out there and protest.”
On whether global leaders should listen more to business leaders:
“Business is the engine of growth in almost every country in the world. I don’t know if the president of any country can be successful if they don’t have an open and honest dialogue with business in that country and invite ideas from business to see how to keep the country going. I don’t believe any president can afford to be removed from business.”
On the acquisition of Russian dairy products and fruit-juice maker OAO Wimm-Bill-Dann:
“We have been on a strategy to shift the portfolio to create a more balanced portfolio of fun for you, better for you, and good for your products. The Wimm-Bill-Damm acquisition is very important because it gives us a foxhole into the dairy business which is a protein source. Wimm-Bill-Dann is a terrific business by itself but it gives us a source of technology to build out the value added dairy business globally.”
On the Chinese market:
“The Chinese market is 1.3 billion people. There are decades of growth in the Chinese market. You cannot just export the American model to China. What we have to do is figure out the right model for China for the Chinese consumers.”
On the increase in commodity prices:
“This type of a commodity price escalation is not good, especially for people who are struggling. Companies like ours are used to these commodities cycles so we learn to manage, but I am not the low end consumer struggling to make ends meet.”
On the bringing healthy alternatives to their product mix:
“I think the consumer in the United States loves PepsiCo precisely for this reason; because we are offering them a wide variety of products. Doritos is not bad for you. Any product consumed in excess is bad for you. Everything has to be eaten in moderation.”
