THIRUVANANTHAPURAM : Customers of Bevco will soon be spoilt for choice as more liquor brands will be on offer at its retail outlets, beginning this April. The procurement system to be adopted by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation (BEVCO) in the new fiscal will offer a diverse product range for customers by giving a level-playing field for manufacturers.
For years, the corporation has been following a complex ‘formula’ for procurement based on the quantum of brands sold. It gave undue advantage to some major players and little scope for new entrants. Currently, there are 545 brands enlisted by the corporation. But only 20 - 30 brands of 10-15 companies are available in shops, thanks to the ‘formula’.
Some major brands and small-scale manufacturers had alleged that the formula gave preferential treatment to certain major players. An example cited by them was the case of a new entrant, a well-known beer company, which could sell only 6,000 cases in the previous fiscal while the prevailing major player sold 50 lakh cases.
“The proposed procurement policy is simple and transparent. It will give equal opportunity to manufacturers. The customers will get a wide range of brands to choose from,” says Bevco chairman and managing director S Syamsundar . The corporation also plans to rework the commission levied from companies. Under this, 20 per cent commission will be levied for sales above 10,000 cases of IMFL. There will be three slabs for beer sales -- the highest being 30 per cent commission for sales of over one lakh cases.
An ‘ensured sales channel’ is a highlight. Under this, the corporation will ensure the sale of the entire stock of an IMFL company if it pays 25 per cent commission. A slight tweaking in the existing commission system had fetched over Rs 10 crore for the corporation during the past three months. The corporation also plans to launch a slew of customer-friendly measures in the new fiscal. All retail outlets are being converted as walk-in shops. About 100 of the total 266 outlets have already become walk-in shops.