Nestle India bets on tech, rural push, premium play as Manish Tiwary eyes top-five global position

New Delhi: FMCG major Nestle India is amplifying focus on technology with a customer-centric approach and expects “healthy volume growth” in locations where it is setting up new factories, Manish Tiwary, the company’s new Chairman and Managing Director, has said, as quoted by Newsdrum.

Tiwary, who took charge earlier this year, has laid out three priorities for the India business: a “consumer-first” mindset across manufacturing, sales and marketing; growth that is led by volumes rather than only value; and an acceleration plan driven by heavier investment behind Nestlé’s power brands such as Maggi, KitKat and Nescafé.

“Second, our growth must be volume-led. It is not just about value growth, but about how many more meals our consumers enjoy with Maggi, how many more cups of coffee they drink, and how many more KitKats they taste,” he said.

Nestle, which has been operating in India for over 113 years, reported sales of Rs 20,077 crore in FY25 and has invested close to Rs 3,900 crore as capex over the last two financial years. India has already become the company’s largest market globally for Maggi and the second-largest for KitKat.

Tiwary said India could move into the top five markets for Swiss parent Nestle SA in the coming years, supported by strong macroeconomic momentum and rising consumption. “I would be disappointed if Nestlé India does not move into the top five markets globally in the years ahead,” he said, while adding that this will also depend on how other Nestlé markets grow.

At present, India is one of the fastest-growing markets for Nestlé SA and is treated as a “priority” geography. “Today, two out of three Indian households use our products. I want that number to grow as the categories we operate in evolve,” Tiwary said, noting that food for pets is also an important frontier through brands like Purina.

To unlock the next wave, Nestlé India plans to deepen penetration at both ends of the market. On one side, it is chasing rural consumers, where growth has been outpacing urban over the last several quarters. Tiwary wants Nestle’s rural growth to be at least 1.5 times faster than its overall growth and pointed out that rural currently contributes around 15% of the India business.

On the other side, the company sees premium opportunities as 20–30 million Indian households now consume at levels comparable to European markets. Through differentiated offerings within existing brands, Nestlé aims to address this premium cohort while continuing to drive mass penetration in core categories.

Digital channels remain a key pillar in that strategy. E-commerce contributed 12.5% of domestic sales a quarter ago, aided by quick commerce platforms and a stream of new launches. “We are in a very sweet spot right now. E-commerce and quick commerce are performing strongly, and our market shares are higher than the industry average,” Tiwary said.

A computer engineer by training, Tiwary said his stint as Country Manager for Amazon’s India market helped him understand “the true power of technology”, learnings he now wants to apply at Nestlé India. “Yes, I am bringing some of those learnings here; that’s precisely why I was given this opportunity. The one area I am particularly focused on accelerating is the role of technology,” he said.

According to Tiwary, this is not only about adopting new tools but also about reimagining how work gets done across the organisation. “The role of technology is not about reducing people but about enhancing the capability of the people we already have,” he said, while stressing that processes and decision-making will increasingly be tech-enabled.

His comments come at a time when Nestlé’s Swiss patent entity, Nestlé SG, has announced plans to cut 16,000 jobs globally over the next two years. In India, the number of permanent employees on the rolls of Nestle India fell 3.8% in FY25 to 8,419. Tiwary underlined that growth “does not need to follow a linear correlation with headcount”, arguing that as technology improves productivity, existing teams can deliver greater impact without proportional additions in manpower.

On the broader FMCG environment, Tiwary said markets are picking up, supported by tax relief measures and GST reforms. The food and beverage industry has delivered double-digit value growth in the last two quarters after a period when urban markets were almost flat with negative volume growth. “Today, even urban markets are in double digits, while rural continues to grow steadily. Now the responsibility shifts to brand owners like us. We must capitalise on the positive consumer sentiment and the structural benefits provided,” he said.

He sees “enormous headroom” for Nestle India, as per capita consumption across categories remains among the lowest globally, not just compared to Europe or the US but even to some neighbouring markets. “Our role is to innovate and drive that growth,” he said, adding that he expects the first half of 2026 to see volume-led growth and continued double-digit expansion for the food and beverage category.

On commodities, Tiwary noted that prices of coffee and cocoa have been under pressure but have now stabilised, with forecasts indicating potential softening over the next year. This, coupled with GST benefits, could allow the company to focus more on driving volumes than on pricing actions, at least in the near term. “It would be too dramatic to say there will be no price hikes, given the volatility in global markets. However, based on current forecasts for the next six months and the GST benefits, I expect the first half of 2026 to be driven more by volume growth than by pricing actions,” he said.

Alongside its core portfolio, Nestlé India is also betting on adjacencies such as pet care and health science. Tiwary said the Purina pet food business and the Nestle Health Science joint venture with Dr Reddy’s, which completed a year, have made “excellent progress”. “Whether it is the JV with Dr Reddy’s, Nespresso, or Purina, these ventures make me very optimistic about Nestle’s future in India,” he added.

Looking ahead, Tiwary did not rule out acquisitions if they help fill clear consumer gaps that Nestle India cannot currently serve. However, he emphasised that most of the growth will come from scaling existing brands. “In this business, fewer, bigger, bolder is very important. Resources, whether people or capital, are finite. I would rather focus on fewer initiatives and execute them well than spread ourselves too thin,” he said.