SCREENGRABfrom www.arc.com.ph
MANILA, Philippines — Businessman Alfredo Yao-led Macay Holdings Inc. is set to acquire 100 percent of the company holding rights to the trademark of soft drink brand RC Cola in the Philippines.
By gobbling up ARC Holdings with which it has common shareholders, Macay will fully consolidate all the licensing, trademark and related rights on the RC Cola brand, according to a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Thursday.
Macay’s board has approved the acquisition of 100 percent of ARC Holdings at such terms and conditions still to be negotiated and finalized, the disclosure said. The board further authorized Macay president, Antonio Panajon, to negotiate, execute, and sign such agreements, papers, and other documentation pursuant to such acquisition.
Formerly the shell company for Maybank ATR Kim Eng Financial Corp. (MAKE), Macay incorporated ARC Refreshments Corp. in 2013 to engage in the business of trading goods such as beverages on wholesale basis. ARC in turn acquired substantially all the operating units of Asiawide Refreshment Corp. and Mega Asia Bottling Corp.
Asiawide holds an exclusive license from RC Cola USA to manufacture and distribute RC Cola in the Philippines while Mega Asia operates the RC Cola bottling and manufacturing operations in the Philippines. It is based in Caloocan but it also has operations in other areas like Pampanga and Davao.
ARC Holdings is a separate entity under the Yao group that holds the trademark licenses of Royal Crown Cola, which in turn owns the rights to the trademark of RC Cola in the Philippines.
At present, the group operates nine RC Cola bottling plants in the country. As the group is the biggest bottler of RC Cola in the region, Royal Crown Cola of Georgia USA has expressed interest to give the group “anchor bottler” status in Southeast Asia.
In the carbonated beverage segment, RC Cola’s estimated market share in Metro Manila is 20-24 percent. The company also estimates that it has yet to penetrate 25-30 percent of overall market nationwide.
The group plans to grow a combination of licensed and company-owned brands. At present, homegrown brands include juice products like Juicy Lemon and California Fruity Orange.
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