Cosmos execs to run RC Cola, Sunkist

Former Cosmos executives Antonio Panajon and Gerry Garcia are expected to independently run the beverage brands RC Cola and Sunkist following the decision of RFM Corp. to terminate its licensing agreement with RC and Sunkist.

RFM has terminated its licensing agreement with RC and Sunkist upon the request of food and beverage giant San Miguel Corp. (SMC).

RFM subsidiary Cosmos Bottling was recently acquired by SMC, which has an existing bottling arrangement with Coca-Cola, for P15 billion.

Industry observers said there have been several offers to acquire the license for RC Cola and Sunkist because of their popularity under the former management team of Panajon and Garcia.

Since the acquisition of the RC Cola license by Cosmos, the beverage firm registered a continued sales growth of 50 percent in 1999, 23 percent in 2000, and 28 percent in 2001. The Sunkist brand likewise posted a steady growth of 2.2 percent in 1999, 31.1 percent in 2000, and 54.4 percent in 2001.

The RC Cola brand is owned by Cotts Beverages, while Sunkist is owned by Sunkist Growers Inc., one of the largest fruit growers cooperative in the US.

Panajon and Garcia were also the management team behind the success of Pop Cola.

From sales of less than 12 million cases per annum in 1989, Pop Cola now sells more than 100 million cases annually after RFM acquired the company from the Wong family.

Pop Cola now has a market share of 28 percent, overtaking Pepsi Cola for the number two slot.