New Delhi: Nestle India today said it crossed the Rs 10,000 crore sales mark in 2017, joining a select group of publicly listed FMCG companies in the country which have crossed the milestone.
The company, which has been in India for 105 years, said it was able to achieve the feat last year despite having to “adapt to significant changes in the external environment”.
Commenting on the annual results, Nestle India CMD Suresh Narayanan said: “It is extremely pleasing that we ended 2017 on a strong note by reaching a historic milestone of over Rs 10,000 crore in revenue, in a year where we had to adapt to significant changes in the external environment”.
HUL and ITC are among the few listed FMCG companies which have annual sales of more than Rs 10,000 crore.
Nestle India, which follows January-December period as its fiscal year, recorded total sales of Rs 10,135.11 crore last year, up 7.71 per cent from Rs 9,409.60 crore in 2016.
Its domestic sales were up 8.21 per cent to Rs 9,472.45 crore, as against Rs 8,753.08 crore of 2016. Exports were up 0.93 per cent to Rs 662.66 crore as against Rs 656.52 crore in 2016.
For the fourth quarter ended December, Nestle India reported an increase of 59.57 per cent in net profit to Rs 311.83 crore, as against Rs 195.41 crore in the year-ago period.
Its net sales during the quarter under review were up 10.91 per cent to Rs 2,589.64 crore, as against Rs 2,334.78 crore.
Nestle India said it launched 15 products last year giving a thrust to “innovation and renovation” in its Maggi and Kit Kat Portfolio. It also introduced ready-to-drink Milo in the market.
“We will continue to be responsive, committed to society, nimble-footed and an organization that lives up to its purpose of enhancing quality of life and contributing to a healthier future,” Narayanan said.
In June 2015, Nestle India had hit a roadblock after it had to withdraw Maggi noodles from the market, following regulatory ban on the product.
It had relaunched the noodles in November, five months after it went off the market due to a ban by FSSAI over alleged presence of lead beyond permissible limits.
