An eye on foreign markets, Thanks in USA and Canada Expands

Created by two Dutch businessmen, with investment in the purchase of land and construction of almost $600 million R factory, the coconut water company Thanks prepares to accelerate your distribution in Brazil – through an agreement with Danone – and also to enlarge exports of their products, with the opening of trade offices and distribution centers in the United States and in Canada. The internationalization project foresees investments of R $50 million in business in 2018. For growing thank you bet on the development of the habit of consumption of coconut water in the United States and also in Europe, where the company operates through local distributors. The company, which is still a startup investment phase, relies on the international market to achieve your revenue goal of R $1 billion in five years. The thank you, which grossed R $70 million in 2016, reached the R $150 million last year and expects to achieve $300 million in 2018 R. According to the President of Thanks, Robert Lane, the deal won breath in the international market in the past two years – 20% of revenues now come from outside Brazil. However, to reach the billion mark, the company will need to raise this percentage to 75%. Lane says that, after reaching that goal, the company may be open to attract a partner. He emphasized, however, that the preference will be for partners who already operate in the food and beverage sector, and not for investment funds. To gain muscle both in Brazil and abroad, thanks goes to expand your product portfolio. The basis of all production, however, will still be the coconut. Currently the company already sells drinks of different flavors from the water and the milk that can be extracted from the fruit. The goal is to expand the portfolio, with the launch of products such as coconut oil for cooking and a line of cosmetics from the same raw material. Thanks design began to be drawn from 2009, when the Dutch Piet Henk Dörr and Willem Kooyker decided to buy land on the North coast of Bahia to develop tourism projects. As the activity did not have the growth that was thought at the time-and resorts near the acquired farms, as the Costa do Sauípe, faced difficulties – emerged the option to invest in the production of coconut, one of the main activities of the agribusiness. Today, the properties of addition 1700 hectares but Thanks only one third of this total is used for the planting of a cross-species of coconut ensures productivity five times higher than the brazilian average. Because of business growth, the company now empowering landowners in the region to be part of your supply chain. "All production, both of raw materials as industrial, will continue in Bahia", says Lessa. "We want to be a global brand of origin." Challenges. The coconut water market in Brazil had 41% by volume expansion in the last five years, according to consulting firm Euromonitor. It is expected a growth pattern until 2022. According to the consultancy, the thank you today holds 5.3% of the Brazilian market of coconut water, but is still well away from Pepsico and Sococo leaders – each with more than 20% of each sector. For the food and beverage consultant Adalbert Viviani, the growth of the market of coconut water is limited in Brazil-which would explain the intent of Thanks to seek exports. In some regions, such as the Northeast and Rio de Janeiro, the industrialized product faces competition from the fruit in natura, easily found by the population. "It's a market that's really concentrated in Sao Paulo and in the South of the country," he explains. A more significant expansion coming up in issue price – so the coconut water in box is still restricted to classes A and b. To Viviani, most customers still do the math. "A box of 1 liter iced tea or even a bottle of 2 liters of soft drinks are cheaper than the coconut water, whose liter does not leave for less than R $7 today in supermarkets."