Former HCCB executive and DFM Foods CEO Lagan Shastri takes charge as SLMG targets USD 10 billion enterprise value and a spot among the top 10 global Coca-Cola bottlers
Lagan Shastri has been appointed chief executive officer (CEO) of SLMG Beverages, effective 10 August, bringing nearly three decades of experience across Coca-Cola, FMCG and consumer businesses to the bottling company.
Shastri spent more than two decades with Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages (HCCB), where he held leadership roles across sales, marketing, commercial profit centre management and strategy. He was later appointed executive director – market operations, overseeing HCCB’s end-to-end market operations and co-leading its strategy with the CEO.
He moved to DFM Foods in 2020 as managing director and CEO, where he led the company through a transformation into a professionally managed, performance-driven organisation. He subsequently joined Reliance Consumer Products as strategic advisor, advising its leadership on commercial strategy and execution. Most recently, Shastri worked in strategic advisory roles with promoters, institutions and emerging businesses, with a focus on governance and organisational scaling.
At SLMG Beverages, Shastri will oversee the company’s market strategy, digital capabilities, manufacturing, supply chain and customer partnerships. He will be based at the company’s corporate office in Lucknow and report to the Operational Board.
“I am honoured and excited to lead SLMG Beverages at such an important stage in its growth journey. SLMG has built an exceptional foundation, anchored in deep market understanding, enduring customer and system partnerships, and a strong innovation-led culture of execution..We have a tremendous opportunity ahead of us to build on these strengths, accelerate growth and create an even more agile, innovative and future-ready organisation,” Shastri said.
Shastri holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Management from the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore and a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi.
SLMG has set an ambition of reaching a USD 10 billion enterprise value and being recognised among the top 10 global Coca-Cola bottlers. The company said it plans to increase investment in people, manufacturing infrastructure, supply chain capabilities and digital systems to support its growth plans.
Headquartered in Lucknow, SLMG Beverages is the flagship beverage company of the Ladhani Group and a Coca-Cola bottling partner. It operates eight manufacturing plants across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, producing fruit juices, carbonated soft drinks, energy drinks and packaged drinking water. The company has a distribution network of more than 3,000 distributors and over 30 warehouses, with a logistics fleet serving more than 1.5 million retail outlets, according to the company.
