Diversified conglomerate ITC remains committed to the domestic market and will prioritise building its presence in India before expanding globally, CMD Sanjiv Puri said on Friday.
This ‘Bharat-First’ strategy, Puri said, would see the company scale up its production across sectors with an investment outlay of Rs 20,000 crore in the medium term. The investment would help the cigarettes-to-consumer goods firm harness value accretion through new brand launches while reinforcing its footprint across the country.
“This is truly India’s moment, and one that ushers in opportunities emerging from policies of the government as well as the country’s young demography, increasing disposable incomes, rapid urbanisation, accelerated digital adoption and entrepreneurial spirit,” he said, addressing shareholders at the company’s 114th annual general meeting (AGM).
Building resilience with localised value chains
India’s moment, Puri said, also comes amid global turbulence and uncertainty that have exposed the fragility of traditional supply chains. He reinforced the need to build agile, diversified and localised manufacturing and supply networks, while systematically addressing climate challenges.
“We are indeed navigating a critical turn, a pivotal inflection point shaped by turbulence, uncertainty and rapid change that calls for novel strategies, innovation and solutions to re-imagine the future. This underscores the imperative to redefine growth and competitiveness, build resilience and adopt a new paradigm of compassionate capitalism,” he said.
In the last few years, ITC has set up eight new manufacturing plants across the country, with 65% of its overall revenue coming from non-cigarette businesses, Puri said. These categories include branded packaged foods, personal care products, education and stationery products, incense sticks and matches. Overall, ITC reaches over 260 million homes (at the end of FY25), up from 250 million reported in FY24.
FMCG growth and new product launches
ITC, Puri said, was building a portfolio across all businesses to win the markets of tomorrow, harnessing its institutional synergies to seize emerging opportunities. This was powered by a three-pronged strategy that focuses on fortifying the core, addressing value-added adjacencies and nurturing new vectors of growth aligned to emerging trends, he said.
ITC’s FMCG business logged a revenue of Rs 21,982 crore in FY25 versus Rs 20,967 crore in FY24. The company also reported a consumer spending of Rs 34,000 crore in FY25, a 4.6% increase from last year.
“The year gone by has witnessed challenges from a weak external sector, dumping of cheap imports and inflationary pressures leading to softening of demand. However, the future outlook remains promising, on the back of the continued thrust on reforms, strong domestic drivers and macro-economic stability,” Puri said.
The company had launched over 100 new products in FY25 anchored on the vectors of health and nutrition, hygiene, protection and care, convenience, on-the-go and indulgence. These were launched across target markets, leveraging the R&D platforms of the company’s life sciences and technology centre (LSTC) and agile product development teams across businesses, he said.
“ITC has, over time, invested in creating and nurturing several integrated supply chains in India that are today pillars of resilience and competitiveness, supporting large-scale livelihoods,” he said.
These value chains from farm to fork, plantations to paper and packaging, together with their distributed manufacturing footprint, promote local entrepreneurship, MSMEs and domestic sourcing with multiple alternatives to provide resilience in an era of intense uncertainty, Puri added.