Founded in 1961, Group Jumex is the largest producer of juices and fruit nectars in Mexico. As of 2017, the country has a population of approximately 130 million people and a hot climate that provides a favourable environment in which Jumex can grow. And grow it has. Mexico offered other nurturing characteristics to the emerging company in the form of natural resources and market pressures. For one, Jumex has access to an incredible variety of tropical fruits from which it can develop new products. Indeed, the firm offers tamarind, guanábana and guava nectars as well as the more commonly known mango, peach, pear and apple. Tropical fruits are readily available everywhere at a relatively low price, making the blending of juices in customers’ homes extremely easy. Juice stands, in which the juice is made on site, are abundant throughout the country. Quality is paramount. Jumex cannot sell products with very little fruit content to Mexicans. Jumex competes with other domestic producers at home for the juice and nectar market. It also competes with soft drink makers, including Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, for the beverage market. However, Mexican consumers have recently improved the lot of the juice makers, as carbonated drinks are increasingly considered unhealthy. Competition has made Jumex into an aggressive marketer. The firm uses all types of distribution systems to maximise market share. It works with national wholesalers, regional wholesalers, supermarkets and small convenience stores to establish a price system that allows them to benefit from selling its products. Mobile communication was provided to the sales team so that orders could be processed immediately, no matter how far away the distribution centre was. This is very important because of the remoteness of many Mexican communities. Prior to this, a salesperson could take two weeks before returning with paperwork to put in an order. Supermarket computerised distribution systems are now integrated with that of Jumex so that their shelves can be stocked as needed. While most firms have shifted to aluminium, Jumex has maintained the traditional tin can and created a distinct shape that stands out against the competition. A tin can is alleged to be more biodegradable than an aluminium can. To serve different markets, Jumex also packages in plastic, glass and juice boxes. Presently, Jumex exports only about 20 per cent of its production but it is highly successful. It has operations in Latin America and the Caribbean, North America, Europe, Asia and Oceania. Distribution and marketing have been adapted to fit each country. In most of Latin America, because of geographic, market and cultural similarities, the distribution system that was implemented was very similar to that found in Mexico. Jumex has been surprisingly successful in the US market, where it is now a leading brand of fruit nectars. Part of this success can be attributed to Mexico’s lower production costs and the availability of inexpensive natural resources. Another reason is the predominance of Mexican immigrants across the United States, particularly in large urban areas. Whether these are new immigrants or the children of immigrants who travel frequently to Mexico, they know the product and are familiar with the tropical fruits, creating an initial market for the product. Other Latin Americans or immigrants from tropical areas familiar with the brand or the fruits also push demand. In 2013, understanding the fact that children comprise approximately one-third of Mexico’s entire population, the Swiss company Capri-Sun decided to enter and become a key player within the Mexican beverage market. Capri-Sun entered the market after securing a licensing agreement with Jumex. It acknowledged the fact that Jumex was already a popular Mexican juice producer, which had acquired an expertise in marketing, and Capri-Sun knew it would stand a greater chance of competing with an already established organisation at its side. In 2014, Mexico introduced a new tax on sugary drinks which resulted in the sales of beverages declining for many firms such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. In order to compensate for higher levels of tax, it was reported that bottle production lines had laid off over 1,600 employees in 2014 and raised prices by 16 per cent. Furthermore, Coca-Cola FEMSA’s juice sales, operating under the Jugos del Valle brand, also experienced a large hit from the introduction of the new tax. However, Jumex decided that it would be too dangerous to pass the tax costs on to consumers, opting to keep its prices the same. Four years after Mexico’s sugar tax, reportedly, the impact in long-term consumption levels was very small. Moreover, research by Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico (ITAM), the Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon (UANL) and the Colegio de México (COLMEX), found that the poorest households in Mexico were impacted the most as they usually spend a larger proportion of their income on the consumption of soft drinks. An important factor that has helped Jumex in developed countries is that its products are considered healthier than carbonated drinks and tend to offer more fruit content than many of the company’s domestic competitors. However, competition in developed countries is likely to heat up in the future as Ceres, a South African juice producer, Jugos del Valle of Mexico, and new entrants from Asia compete on price, quality and variety of fruit juices. In the health market sector, organic fruit juices from developing and developed countries will also offer competition.