'Jamaica not as violent as I was told'... says Pepsi's Gustavo Flamenco

Barbara Ellington, Public Affairs Editor

For just over two years, he's been the commercial director for Pepsi-Cola Jamaica Limited, and already Guatemalan Gustavo Flamenco has visited all 14 parishes - a remarkable achievement, considering many Kingstonians live in Jamaica all their lives without venturing farther than Spanish Town in St Catherine!

But besides being here to drive the commercial strategy of Pepsi's business which includes sales, distribution, logistics and marketing for Jamaica, Flamenco is thoroughly enjoying the island along with his wife and daughter.

Flamenco's decision to explore Jamaica perhaps stems from the fact that he was totally unprepared for the Jamaica he found after having been told before arrival that this was one of the most violent countries ever - a tad disconcerting since he had always looked forward to being in the land of reggae music.

"I had heard a lot about violence in Jamaica, in the press and from people," Flamenco said, adding, "I come from a very violent country, but I feel 10 times safer here than I do at home."

Flamenco said that while not bad-mouthing his homeland, it was an eye-opening experience to discover first-hand that Jamaica was not as violent as it is being made out to be.

Not naive

The Pepsi head is not naïve about the reality. He said there is violence in Jamaica but he sees it as being sectionalised and he would not be venturing to places reputed to be violent, but he noted, "neither could I walk around in the streets of Guatemala wearing my watch, other jewellery or exposing my wallet without being mugged".

Flamenco said Jamaica is a nice place and he was not expecting it to be so at all.

So much so, he has even coined himself a name. "I am a 'Guamaican', I have gone off the beaten track to places like Winifred Beach in Portland (my favourite). I love Portland because it is so Bohemian. It is everything I envisioned the true Jamaica would be, it is not Americanised like the tourist resorts - still green, lush and cool," he said.

Of his brand, without missing a beat, Flamenco asserted, "Pepsi is number one."

He said Jamaica is an interesting market. "This is Pepsi country. It's a love brand. Bubbla is doing very well and enjoys popularity everywhere."

This leaves Flamenco to conclude that it is a great feeling when your brand is at the top of everyone's mind. With this in mind, Pepsi is now near completion of a new production line for its plastic bottles.

When complete, Pepsi will blow and shape some 40,000 bottles every hour at Spanish Town Road. "We need to keep up with the demand," Flamenco said.

Jamaica 50

Like the rest of corporate Jamaica, Pepsi is stepping up to the plate with major plans to boost the upcoming 50th anniversary of Independence celebrations.

The two events of choice are summer's main party - Smirnoff Dream Weekend and Reggae Sumfest.

There are some interesting projects lined up for the market including a Ting campaign. Flamenco is mum on the dollar amounts, suffice to say, the two events carve out a huge chunk of Pepsi's marketing budget.

Apart from that, Flamenco said, "We support many charities that we don't make a noise about, mainly in the communities where we are located."

He said Pepsi will continue with its summer employment programme next year, having cut it this year due to the present construction project.

On the positive side, even though the country is still in the throes of a recession, Pepsi plans to maintain prices where they are for at least a year. "Unless, there is a major tax increase, as a result of decisions from the International Monetary Fund negotiations," the Pepsi boss said.

Prices can be maintained because Pepsi has other cost-cutting strategies within the supply chain such as a reduction in the size of the bottle necks.

As far as energy costs go, Flamenco noted that Pepsi is already exploring solar technology, leading to some level of reduction in electricity consumption, but a lot more has to be done.

In spite of the challenges, Flamenco said he's here for the long haul and committed to achieving his goals.

"I am enjoying myself, Jamaica is growing on me," he said.

Read Business Editor Lavern Clarke's article: 'Pepsi Jamaica adding production capacity, sees path to growing the brand', published on Friday, May 4.