PepsiCo’s second-largest bottler, Varun Beverages, is set to enter the alcoholic beverages market in India. The company board has approved setting up a wholly owned subsidiary known as KIVA Spirits & Company. This is to handle its Ready-To-Drink (RTD alcoholic beverages business, which is subject to regulatory approvals. The news was announced on August 26, 2026, Tuesday, after months of speculation.
Varun Beverages is known as one of PepsiCo's largest franchise bottlers outside the US. It manufactures and distributes a range of beverages under PepsiCo-owned brands across its markets.
This approval by KIVA will now allow it to manufacture and sell ready-to-drink (RTD) alcoholic beverages and allied products. To be entirely funded by Varun Beverages, the new subsidiary will have a paid-up equity capital of INR 9 crore and authorised share capital of INR 10 crore.
The company, in a regulatory filing, said that, “The Board of Directors of the Company at their meeting held today approved to incorporate a wholly-owned subsidiary company in India, inter alia, to carry on the business of Ready to Drink (RTD), Alcoholic Beverages, subject to receipt of applicable requisite approval.”
This move by RJ Corp, owned by Ravi Jaipuria, to venture into the alcobev industry comes as domestic demand remains steady even amid a slowdown in global consumption. It is one of the fastest and largest-growing markets globally, as per JM Financial. The data shows the market size of India’s alcoholic beverages industry as 1,100 million cases, with beer and IMFL accounting for 400 million cases each.
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The industry is very keen to see Varun Beverages in this new space. This is because the high-volume spirits and beer market is dominated by foreign players. The reason behind this is the need for extensive distributive networks and high investment.
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Varun Beverages has appointed Prathamesh Mishra as the chief executive and managing director of the proposed subsidiary to lead this highly competitive alcobev business. Mishra is a seasoned business leader and has over 30 years of experience across consumer businesses. His most recent work was serving at Diageo in Japan and Korea as the Managing Director.
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On Tuesday, after months of speculation, Varun Beverages finally announced its entry into the alcoholic beverages sector. This wholly-owned subsidiary will be known as KIVA Spirits and Company Limited and will be managed by Pratahmesh Mishra.
