Ankara, April 6 - The Turkish arm of PepsiCo Inc. said on Thursday it was open to new acquisition opportunities to help it overtake Coca-Cola Co. as the country's market leader.
Jim Zaza, PepsiCo's Turkish president, told Reuters the group would continue with its double-digit percentage growth in Turkey, which he said was more promising than leading emerging market Russia.
"Turkey is a market with tremendous potential. It has a young, growing population. It's the 16th-largest economy in the world," said Zaza.
"In this market, if you don't grow double-digit, you don't really grow ... We want to be the first," said Zaza.
He said he was not satisfied with Pepsi's current market share in Turkey but declined to reveal that figure.
Pepsi officials say it has the largest market share in the Middle East region. However in Turkey, it faces strong competition from Coca-Cola and Cola Turka, made by the leading Turkish food and drinks company Ulker.
The company does not have any acquisition plans at the moment, but is interested in opportunities.
"If we identify a healthy opportunity tomorrow, we will definitely look into that," Zaza said.
Pepsi purchased local soft drinks producer Fruko-Tamek for $150 million in 2001, expanding its Turkey operation and has invested another $100 million since then.
PepsiCo's Turkish operations grew by 12 percent in 2004 and 2005, just above average growth in the cola market of 10 percent.
"We will continue to invest $30 to $40 million a year in the future," said Zaza. He declined to give sales and profits figures for Pepsi in Turkey.