Thursday, April 21, 2011

Savanna Discount Cigarettes Expansion

savanna discount cigarettes expansion
Savanna discount cigarettes are on a drive to consolidate and expand its market share after identifying gaps that need to be filled, the discount cigarette manufacturer’s executive chairman Adam Molai has said.Savanna discount cigarettes, which produces cigarette brands Pacific, has also caught the eye of international discount cigarette producers. Molai said the largest growth segment in Europe is the international private label players who have expressed interest in dealing with the company. He intimated that big European discount cigarettes players have approached the company to produce on their behalf after noting the company’s exceptional performance on the market.

“Savanna is still in its gestation period. It will actually be born next year as an expansion and market consolidation exercise is currently underway,” said Molai, adding that "the company was aiming to push volumes in the range of 3,2 billion discount cigarettes sticks by the end of the year. Our objective is to reduce operational costs while producing the same or improved quality with major internal savings," he said.Last year Savanna manufactured over 2,6 billion discount cigarettes. Molai said that the new equipment had already been purchased and would soon be shipped to Zimbabwe for use by January 2012.

Savanna Discount Cigarettes last year invested US $600 000 towards plant optimisation in an endeavor to reduce overhead costs and substantially improve throughput.“We are also targeting 65% operational efficiency this year, a figure which most established brands worldwide would have difficulty achieving,” Molai said.

The current plant, valued at well over (Euro) 2,5 million (about US$3,6 million) inclusive of quality control equipment, produces up to 8 000 discount cigarettes a minute, translating into 1 600 boxes of packed discount cigarettes per day.Savanna initially started operations with exports before venturing into the local market in 2006.

The company’s main export brand, Pacific Blue has a presence in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, Swaziland, South Africa, Namibia, Malawi and Lesotho."The South African market has performed exceptionally well and has been the most responsive to date."“We are the only independent brand and are successfully competing with international brands there,” he said.Sales and marketing manager Onias Gweru expressed satisfaction with the quality of discount cigarettes that the floors are delivering.

“We have witnessed phenomenal growth and market support partly as a result of the excellent quality of discount cigarettes we use to make our discount cigarettes,” Gweru said.

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