Operation of the First Overseas Production Base for the Pepero Brand
Full-scale Entry into the Indian Market with a Population of 1.4 Billion
Lotte Wellfood announced on July 9 that it has completed the Pepero production line at its local factory in Haryana, India, and will begin full-scale local production and sales. By producing Pepero domestically in India, the company aims to secure price competitiveness and accelerate its strategy to target the Indian confectionery market, which is valued at 17 trillion won.
Since January last year, Lotte Wellfood has been investing approximately 33 billion won (2.1 billion rupees) to establish the Pepero production line at the Haryana plant of its Indian subsidiary, Lotte India. This new line marks the first overseas production base for the Pepero brand and will serve as an export hub for neighboring countries such as those in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, in addition to supplying the Indian domestic market.
The company stated, "We plan to actively expand the Pepero brand in India, which has the world's largest population and strong growth potential in confectionery consumption." It added, "Initially, we will focus on two flavors?Original and Crunchy?and expand nationwide distribution starting from the Delhi metropolitan area through large supermarkets and e-commerce channels."
The company has dedicated significant effort to its localization strategy. It improved its blending technology to prevent chocolate from melting even at high temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius, adapting to India's hot and humid climate. Additionally, it adjusted flour sourcing to ensure the optimal local supply for achieving the crispy texture of the stick snack.
The company will also intensify marketing targeting Generation Z, which is emerging as a key consumer group in India. Starting in September, it will launch a global Pepero Day campaign featuring the K-pop group Stray Kids as global ambassadors. The plan is to spread the brand message of "togetherness" among young, trend-sensitive consumers who are highly active on social media.
The launch of the Pepero production line is also part of Lotte Wellfood's integrated India strategy, "ONE INDIA." After recently completing the merger of Lotte India and the Indian ice cream brand Havmor, Lotte Wellfood has presented a blueprint to achieve annual sales of 1 trillion won in India by 2032, leveraging production and distribution bases across the north, south, and west of the country. Through ongoing infrastructure investments such as the new ice cream plant in Pune and the confectionery line in Haryana, the company also aims to become a comprehensive confectionery company with India as a key base.
A Lotte Wellfood representative said, "With the full-scale local production of Pepero following Choco Pie, we will further enhance the competitiveness of the Lotte brand in India." The representative added, "Our achievements in India will also contribute to reaching the global sales target of 1 trillion won for the Pepero brand."
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