A very good afternoon to you sir.

Allow me start this presentation with a story, from when Napoleon invaded Russia. In 1812, Napoleon
invaded Russia with over 680,000 men. Not only did the French army under him outnumber the Russians,
they also outgunned them with superior equipment and artillery.

However, out of his expectations, the Russians did not resist the French, but allowed them to freely enter
their borders without engaging them.

This turned out to be disastrous for Napoleon. You see, the French were not suitably supplied to face the
harsh Russian winter. On the western European battefields, they were used to foraging on the fields for
sustenance. But this was not an option in the snowy Russian plains.

Ultimately, the invasion ended in failure with over 300,000 French casualties.

This campaign teaches us how the same strategy does not work everywhere. This is a valuable lesson, not
only for military generals, but for the international corporate scenario as well. Companies, when
expanding to foreign lands, must learn to alter their strategies, or face annihilation.

To this end, today we are going to see how Akij Food & Beverage Ltd, a Bangladeshi soft drink
producing company can survive in the desert of middle east.

SLIDE 2

But first, let have a look at the overall situation.

Akij has invested heavily towards providing top quality products to consumers. The company has
invested over 3 billion taka in order restructure their companies with an aseptic system; ensuring their
drinks are free from microbiological germs and have a longer shelf life. The company also ensuress that
14% of their drinks consist of the fruit pulp harvested from the company’s very own mango orchards,
along with local farmers.

Despite all this, the company has yet to overcome the stigma of being being a “Low Quality Alternative
Product” produced in Bangladesh. This is largely due to inability to properly advertise their products.
You see, due to legal factors, Akij is restricted in using Integrated Marketing Communication in the
Middle East and has to depend mostly on below-the-line marketing. The company is also restricted from
customizing campaigns in trade fairs.
Finally, another point of interest is that the company has changed the name of their product from ‘Frutika’
to ‘Aafi’ to better fit the market