ITC's chairman highlights digital transformation and FMCG aspirations at 113th AGM

In the Company’s 113th AGM address Sanjiv Puri, chairman and managing director, ITC, shared his Vision on ITC: Stakeholder Value through Purposeful Performance. Relevant Excerpts from the speech are below:

ITC’s digital investments power mainstreaming of the digital-first culture, transforming all facets of operations - from insighting to product development, smart sourcing to on-time efficient delivery, superior brand engagement and marketing through real-time content, connect and commerce. An intelligent big data ecosystem leveraging Industry 4.0, AI/ML and GenAI is redefining consumer experiences and efficiencies in operations. ITC’s Trade Marketing & Distribution infrastructure has transformed into a smart omni-channel network, with a 2x growth in market coverage and 3 out of 4 retailers carrying our FMCG products. ITC has also launched 6 exclusive D2C platforms. The e-B2B platform of ITC, UNNATI, continues to be rapidly scaled up, covering nearly 7 lakh outlets.

ITC Next Strategy Reinforces ITC’s Aspiration to Be No.1 in FMCG Industry

To strengthen the future-ready FMCG portfolio, ITC has launched nearly 100 superior and differentiated offerings annually, anchored on the evolving segments of Health & Nutrition, Hygiene, Protection & Care, Convenience, On-the-Go, Indulgence, among others. Sustained margin expansion was driven by premiumisation, delayering of operations, agile cost management and operating leverage. This led to an average margin expansion of 100 bps per annum over the last 7 years. ITC’s FMCG products now reach 250 million households with consumer spends of Rs.32,500 crores. The drivers of structural competitiveness unleashed by the ITC Next strategy reinforce our aspiration to be No.1 in this industry.

In the year gone by, despite global challenges and subdued domestic consumption, ITC delivered resilient performance on a high base. Gross Revenue was up by 6.8%, ex-Agri Business, which faced headwinds from regulatory trade restrictions, given food security concerns and inflation. PAT for the year grew by 8.9%.

Over a 2-year period, overall Revenue and PAT grew at a CAGR of 9.9% and 16.5%, respectively. FMCG-Others registered a growth of 14.5%, while Segment PBIT grew at an impressive 38.8%. While near-term challenges remain a concern for the FMCG industry, ITC’s innovative capacity, future-ready portfolio, resilient & agile supply-chains, digital investments and focus on penetration-led growth position us well in the addressable market potential of Rs.5 lakh crores in our operating categories.

ITC’s Manufacturing Network of over 200 Factories Supports Local Entrepreneurship & Sustainable Livelihood

Contributing to the ‘Make in India’ vision, ITC continues to invest in building world-class infrastructure and eco-systems linked to its products and services. Today, despite our growing footprint, nearly 90% of all raw materials are locally procured. The extended manufacturing network of over 200 factories supports local entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods. In the last 2 years alone, investments in 3 owned luxury hotels, 8 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities, including for products covered under the PLI scheme, together with the 2x expansion of ITC’s distribution infrastructure have generated significant livelihoods. Investments underway in 3 state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities as well as an IT & Knowledge Centre will also add to this potential. ITC engages with over 6,000 MSMEs, extensively focussing on upgrading their technology, quality and skills given our belief that enterprises are only as strong as their value-chains.

Today, ITC’s businesses and value chains support over 6 million sustainable livelihoods. ITC’s presence across all three sectors of the economy positions us well to make a growing contribution in this area of national priority.