Crisis is good time to make changes in company: Nestle India CMD on lessons from Maggi fiasco
Narayanan, who will retire at the end of this month after leading Nestle India for a decade and turning the company around from an existential crisis to a thriving business, in an interview with PTI said when there is "any movement in the environment, a company should be on top of it in terms of gauging how impactful it is going to be".
The company's popular instant noodles Maggi was banned by the food regulator FSSAI in June 2015 for allegedly containing lead beyond permissible limits, forcing the company to withdraw the product from the market. Narayanan who was then serving as Chairman and CEO of Nestle Philippines, was immediately moved to India by the Swiss food multinational to handle the crisis. He joined Nestle India on August 1, 2015, as Managing Director, and Maggi was relaunched in November 2015, five months after the ban was lifted. When asked about what lessons were learnt from the Maggi crisis, he said, "Crisis is a very good time to make change. You can jettison all the things that are not serving the purpose of adding value to the consumer and put in things that add value to the consumer."
Remembering his experience during the Maggi crisis, he said his first 100 days had been one of the greatest challenges of his career. "I came into Nestle at a very troubled time. It was probably the existential crisis that was happening. It was one of those situations where Maggi was at the centre of all the news in the business world of India," he noted. Recollecting the experience, Narayanan said, "A crisis of this kind is more than technical facts. It is perspectives and perceptions that matter. Our initial response was more on facts, whereas we underestimated that Maggi as a brand was so much more impactful with the consumers." Therefore, he said, "When we started the conversation, not only with the environment, but also with the media, we brought to bear the power of the brand and what we stood for as a company that is of the highest food quality and safety." Second one, Narayanan said, "I think we learned a lesson that any movement in the environment, a company should be on top of it in terms of gauging how impactful it is going to be." According to him, it was the trust of brand Maggi and the collective strength of its employees, partners, distributors, suppliers and consumers that helped the company bounce back with a renewed vigour. "We accepted the dictum that failing to succeed will help us to succeed," said Narayanan, often called the "crisis manager" of Nestle who steered Nestle from crises in several other markets such as Egypt and Singapore besides the Maggi incident in India. After the Maggi crisis, Nestle India quickened the pace of innovations, added Narayanan who is hanging his boots on Thursday after having a 26-year-long stint with the Swiss multinational Nestle. Elaborating further, he said, "We were an innovative company, but rather slow in innovation. So today we innovated about four times the rate of what we were doing pre-crisis. We have introduced almost 150 to 160 new products." Now the Rs 20,000 crore FMCG company is stronger, vibrant and connected, added Narayanan, It again got its pole position in the fast-growing instant noodles segment, where it still dominates with over 60 per cent market share from near extinction. "It's the only example of a brand that went from market leadership to death and back to leadership in three months time and from then on it has been a journey that has been upwards despite the crisis that we have faced," said he noted.
Nestle India's turnover is now about 2.5 times what it was in 2015 and our profits are about five times what it was in 2015, before the Maggi crisis. "Our market capitalisation is about 4 times what it was in 2015. Our number of shareholders is about 7 times," he said, adding, "our return of equity, which is a measure of the performance of the company went up from 19 per cent to almost 90 per cent."
Overall, the proportion of new innovations, which was around 1 to 2 per cent of the turnover, went about 7 per cent now.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Mint
2 hours ago
- Mint
Swiss Firms Rethink Global Strategy After Tariff Surge
Simon Michel couldn't take the risk of waiting any longer. As Switzerland was assessing the shock announcement that the US would impose a 39% tariff, the chief executive officer of Ypsomed Holding AG realized that he needed to act. Ypsomed plans to move some production of medical devices to the German city of Schwerin, where the tariff is less than half the Swiss level. The executive also wants to ramp up production in the US, he told Bloomberg News. The Burgdorf-based company isn't alone. Across the country, executives and owners at businesses — from large multinationals such as food giant Nestle SA to small domestic champions — are trying to figure out how to deal with the new reality. The scale of the levy exceeded all expectations and caught the Swiss business elite off guard. In a call with executives on Monday, one of Switzerland's chief negotiators said that they were still working on getting the overall tariff rate down. Their response to her was blunt: there's no substitute for the US market. Plans to move, such as Michel's, could still change if Switzerland gets Donald Trump to lower the tariff. But with so much at stake, some businesses are taking matters into their own hands. Machine-tool maker Netstal Maschinen AG is looking to reduce the share of Swiss components in its supply chain for products aimed at the US market, which accounts for approximately 15% of revenue. Orders from the US have already fallen 20% in the first half of 2025, CEO Renzo Davatz said. And it's likely to get worse if the Swiss don't get a better deal. A one-hour drive away in Weggis, Adrian Steiner, the CEO of Thermoplan AG, which builds coffee machines for Starbucks among other things, is sketching out plans to expand production capacities in the EU and the US, he said. However, he wants to wait for a final decision until the US tariffs kick in. One high-profile consumer product caught up in the Swiss tariffs is Nespresso. Though Nestle SA sells the coffee capsules all over the world, it only produces them in Switzerland. Most of its other product lines are made locally for their respective markets. The same holds true for many of Switzerland's international listed companies, including consumer brands such as Lindt & Spruengli AG and Logitech International AG, as well as industrial players like ABB Ltd and Holcim AG. After Trump's so-called Liberation Day announcements on tariffs, some firms without fully diversified production front-loaded shippings to the US. Shipping company Kuehne and Nagel International AG saw a slight increase in industry-wide shipments from Switzerland to US in the period. Switzerland is only a small part of their business. But for companies that waited, believing the government's optimistic messaging about a US deal, there was a shock last week. Now, there's no time. 'There is some movement to expedite loadings, but generally the timeline is too tight to load unplanned shipments into containers and to then gate in and get on a ship,' a spokesperson for Kuehne and Nagel said. 'Many hinterland manufacturers simply did not have time.' The risks to the Swiss economy are sizable. A 39% tariff rate might knock off 1% of Switzerland's gross domestic product over the medium term. While large multinational companies have some chance of reorienting supply chains and production to cope, it's much harder for smaller family-owned businesses. There's also the personal cost. Lobby group Swissmem says the tariffs put tens of thousands of Swiss jobs at risk. Among Switzerland's top companies, Roche Holding AG and Novartis AG are in the clear for now as pharmaceuticals are exempt. But that might soon change, with Trump warning he could announce tariffs on the sector in the next week. Some companies have tried to get ahead of the tariffs by frontloading early in the year. 'We transferred a lot of stock already in the first six months of this year when the story about the tariffs started,' watchmaker Swatch said in a statement. 'In such a situation, inventory is key and a competitive advantage.' With assistance from Naomi Kresge, Jennifer Creery, Noele Illien and Sonja Wind.
Mint
4 hours ago
- Mint
Swiss President Discussed Tariffs With US Secretary of State
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter said she talked about trade relations in her meeting with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio as she attempts to avert a 39% levy as of Thursday. 'We discussed bilateral cooperation between Switzerland and the US, the tariff situation, and international issues,' she said on X after the meeting in Washington. The US State Department doesn't lead negotiations for bilateral deals. The Swiss president dashed to the US capital Tuesday in a last-minute attempt to prevent her American counterpart from imposing the highest tariff of any developed nation on Switzerland. Donald Trump announced the measure last week, and it's set to take effect Thursday — leaving the Swiss with a tight window to try to sway him. Keller-Sutter traveled to America without a formal invite from the White House, according to a person familiar with the matter, so it remains to be seen whether the US president will agree to meet. The two spoke on the phone last Thursday, with Trump telling CNBC that 'the woman was nice, but she didn't want to listen' to his complaint about Switzerland's massive trade surplus with the US. Asked about the latest on Switzerland, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said that 'I'm not aware of any changes since yesterday, but it's a fast moving thing.' 'You know, we've got Switzerland coming in and trying to renegotiate their tariffs, and we'll see how it goes,' he told Fox Business. The level of Trump's tariff stunned the Swiss after talks that they thought looked promising. If the tariff rate came into effect across the board — including on pharmaceuticals — that would put up to 1% of Switzerland's economic output at risk over the medium term, according to Bloomberg Economics. The paradox faced by the Swiss president — who also is her country's finance minister — is that any concessions may be politically costly without meaningfully curbing the US-Switzerland trade gap. The $38 billion overhang as of last year is probably the main obstacle to any deal. The nature of the massive Swiss surplus with the US — primarily down to gold, pharmaceuticals, watches and medical devices — means a quick reduction is unlikely. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
8 hours ago
- Business Standard
Switzerland Schengen visa: New doc rules for Indian applicants from August
If you're an Indian traveller heading to Switzerland, there's a fresh set of visa rules you need to follow. VFS Global, which manages visa applications for the Swiss Embassy in India, has issued an instruction: Only submit documents listed in the official checklist. Anything extra will be ignored. 'All the applicants are hereby informed that only the documents listed in the official checklist for the respective visa category will be accepted at the Visa Application Centre (VAC),' the Schengen visa alert reads. VFS further clarified that for lengthy bank statements, only the first three and last three pages will be considered. Switzerland's visa rejection rate in 2024 In 2024, Switzerland rejected 15 per cent of Schengen visa applications from India. France topped the rejection list with 31,314 applications, followed by Switzerland (26,126), Germany (15,806), Spain (15,150), and the Netherlands (14,569). Officials believe that stricter documentation rules will streamline the process and reduce back-and-forth queries. What are the mandatory documents you must submit? • Valid passport issued within the last 10 years, with at least three months' validity beyond return date, and two blank pages • One recent passport-size photo with a white background, pasted—not stapled or pinned • Completed and signed visa application form (for minors, legal guardians must sign) • Employer introduction letter on company letterhead, signed and stamped by HR, mentioning position, travel dates, purpose of visit, and a no-objection statement • Travel insurance covering a minimum of EUR 30,000 (Rs 30,36,660), valid across Schengen countries • Confirmed return flight tickets, including intra-Schengen travel plans • Hotel bookings, tour confirmations, or payment receipts • Financial documents (in A4, bank-stamped and signed): last three months' salary slips, personal bank statements, and ITR-Vs (2 years for employed, self-employed, and retired individuals) • Family applications can be submitted together; only the head of family needs to provide financial papers, insurance, and bookings with all names mentioned • For students (16+), a valid student ID and an introduction letter from the institution • For minors (under 18), notarised consent from non-travelling parents, along with copies of their IDs When should you apply for a Switzerland Schengen visa? The earliest you can apply is six months before your planned trip. But don't wait too long—the cut-off is 15 days prior to travel. The sweet spot for applying is 30 to 60 days before departure, giving you a buffer for appointment scheduling and processing delays, according to VFS. Where should you submit your application? All Switzerland Schengen visa applications from India must go through VFS Global. The documents are processed centrally at the Swiss Embassy in New Delhi, but you can visit a local VFS centre for submission and biometrics. What are the visa fees and processing timelines? According to Switzerland's Federal Department of Foreign Affairs: Adults: €90 (around Rs 8,000) Children (6–12 years): €45 (around Rs 4,000) Children under 6: Free VFS service charge: Rs 1,800–3,000 (varies by centre) Processing generally takes 10–15 working days. However, during peak seasons, it could stretch up to 30 working days. Do you need a biometrics appointment? Yes, biometrics (fingerprints and a digital facial photo) are mandatory for applicants aged 12 and above. If you have submitted biometrics within the last 59 months (about five years), you may not need to appear in person again. Appointments can be booked online at You will need to fill out the application form online, print it, and then schedule your visit. What new changes should you be aware of? Several procedural changes are on the horizon: • From August 2025, VFS will not accept additional documents or explanations beyond the checklist • Starting October 12, 2025, the EU will introduce the Entry/Exit System (EES), which replaces manual passport stamping with biometric checks when entering or leaving Schengen countries • In 2026, Schengen countries will move to a fully digital visa system, removing paper visa stickers. This system is yet to launch in India but is expected within the next year
