Coca-Cola HBC Aktie

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Coca-Cola HBC's Conference Call for the 2026 Third Quarter Trading Update. [Operator Instructions] I must also advise that this conference is being recorded today, Wednesday, November 4, 2026. I will now pass the floor to one of your speakers, Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead. Thank you.

Good morning, and thank you all for joining the call. I'm here with our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. We'll start with some opening remarks from Zoran, and then open the floor to your questions. Please keep to 1 question and 1 follow-up, waiting for us to answer the first question before moving to your follow-up. We have about an hour for the call today, which should give plenty of time for a good discussion.

I will also remind you that this conference call contains various forward-looking statements. These should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements in our trading update this morning. With that, I will turn the call over to Zoran.

Thank you, Jemima. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the call. We delivered another strong quarter, demonstrating the consistency of our model and the strength of our focused execution in driving broad-based growth despite the dynamic operating environment. Let me share 3 key highlights from these results.

First, we delivered strong high-quality top line growth, building on the strength of our first half. Organic revenue increased by 9%, led by volumes, but also supported by good revenue per case growth. Revenue and volumes grew across all 3 segments despite a range of market conditions.

Second, investments in our portfolio and bespoke capabilities continue to set us apart. These investments support the consistency of our performance and translate into strong market execution and share gains. We have gained 70 basis points of value share in NARTD year-to-date and 40 basis points in Sparkling. I'm pleased that we were again the #1 contributor to our retail customers' absolute value growth within FMCG in our European markets, another demonstration of how we drive joint value creation with our customers.

And thirdly, while the macro environment remains dynamic, we are well positioned to deliver on our full year targets and have made a small update to our revenue guidance today. So a strong quarter, and I would like to sincerely thank all our teams, customers, suppliers and partners for their ongoing efforts and support. I'll now share some detail on the Q3 performance, and then Anastasis and I will be happy to take your questions.

I'm very pleased by the continued strong performance in Q3. Organic revenue grew 9%, led by volume growth of 5.4% with revenue per unit case up 3.4%, supported by targeted revenue growth management initiatives and positive mix. Reported revenue grew 9.6%, driven by strong organic growth and a small benefit from FX translation. Volumes expanded at a similar pace to Q2, and we saw broad-based strength across our 24/7 portfolio.

I spoke at the half 1 results about the fantastic FIFA World Cup program we executed in partnership with The Coca-Cola Company. We continue to leverage all these initiatives through the start of Q3 and built on this momentum through the summer with focused execution of our brand activations and innovation, enabling us to capture the growth opportunities across our markets during this important period.

Our revenue growth management capabilities continue to support growth as we offer consumers choice across a wide range of occasions and price points. Affordability remained important, and we maintained our focus on accessible entry pack with a good performance from PET multi-serve entry packs across markets. Alongside this, we continue to drive positive mix through targeted initiatives.

Single-serve mix improved by 180 basis points in the quarter, supported by recent pack innovations. 1 example is the 0.5-liter Trademark Coke Supercan launched earlier this year in Ireland, Poland and Greece. This is an excellent single-serve proposition that is resonating strongly with consumers. We are also seeing strong momentum from recently launched single-serve formats in Egypt, including the 0.5-liter Trademark Coke PET bottle and the 250 ml Fury can. Overall, the quality of our execution over the summer continued to set us apart, driving market share gains across NARTD and Sparkling.

Now turning to performance by category. Sparkling volumes grew by 4.5% in the quarter. Trademark Coke grew mid-single digits, driven by Coke Zero and Coke Zero Zero. During the quarter, we rolled out a new visual identity for Coke Zero across most of our markets, supported by dedicated activations and value-added promotions. The new packaging brings Coke Zero closer to the broader Coca-Cola brand look and feel, creating a more consistent and recognizable brand presence across the portfolio. At the same time, Coke Zero Zero continued its standout performance, delivering triple-digit growth.

Sprite grew high single digits as we tapped into summer refreshment occasions, leveraging local music festivals and activations across channels to highlight the full portfolio, including the new Lemon Mint Chill flavor launched earlier in the year. Fanta grew low single digits, driven primarily by Africa as we continue to focus on winning in food-led moments.

Adult Sparkling volumes increased low single digits, driven by Schweppes and Three Cents. We continue to strengthen Schweppes brand relevance in the straight drinking occasion with dedicated campaigns amplified by local influencers while maintaining mixability focus in the out-of-home channel with our global brand ambassadors.

Energy continued to perform exceptionally well with volumes increasing 24.7% despite strong comparatives, in line with the year-to-date volume growth. Importantly, growth was broad-based with all 3 of our segments growing double digits. Recently launched Monster innovations are resonating strongly with consumers, while sports and music partnerships continue to support growth across the whole portfolio.

Coffee volumes in the out-of-home channel increased 10.1% as we recruited new outlets and grew in existing ones. Total coffee volumes declined 2.3%, reflecting our ongoing strategic decision with Costa Coffee to prioritize the out-of-home opportunity. Stills volumes increased 3.2%. Water grew low single digits, helped by weather trends, while juices grew mid-single digits with a particularly strong performance in Nigeria. Sports drinks grew more than 20%, benefiting from FIFA World Cup activations in July as well as local sports partnerships. For example, we launched a new Powerade flavor in Egypt in partnership with Al Ahly Football Club.

Turning to sustainability. The Science Based Targets Network independently validated our nature materiality assessment and prioritization. We are the first Coca-Cola bottler and one of the first companies globally to achieve this milestone. The assessment identified water as our most material nature-related impact in our direct operations and reinforces the importance of our water stewardship priorities and in our Mission Refresh sustainability commitment.

Now turning to performance by segment. In Established, organic revenue grew 8%, with volumes up 5.6% and revenue per case increasing 2.3%. I'm really pleased with the level of volume growth we delivered, which was driven by strong execution across the segment and supported by favorable weather trends in Western Europe. Sparkling grew mid-single digits, led primarily by Trademark Coke, while Energy increased high teens and Stills grew mid-single digits. We saw mid-single-digit volume growth in both Italy and Greece and continued momentum in Ireland. Switzerland delivered a particularly good improvement with volumes up low double digits.

In developing markets, organic revenue increased 8.7%, with volumes up 3.7% and revenue per case growth of 4.8%. Sparkling grew mid-single digits, including mid-teens growth in Coke Zero and triple-digit growth in Coke Zero Zero. Energy grew mid-teens despite the tough comparative. Poland delivered low single-digit volume growth with a sequential improvement from Q2. Hungary also grew low single digits, while the Czech Republic maintained its strong momentum with volumes increasing low teens.

Finally, in our emerging markets, organic revenue grew 9.8%, with volumes increasing 5.8% and revenue per case up 3.8%. Nigeria delivered low teens volume growth, supported by activations to mark 75 years of the Nigerian Bottling Company. Nigeria is where our business began 75 years ago. And today, we are as committed as ever to the country and to the wider growth opportunity across Africa.

Egypt grew high single digits despite tough comparatives with good growth across Sparkling and continued strong momentum in Energy. Elsewhere, Romania volumes declined low single digits against a challenging consumer backdrop, while Ukraine declined by more than 20%, reflecting the difficult environment and ongoing supply chain disruption, which started in early September.

And now looking ahead to the rest of 2026. With regards to CCBA acquisition, we have now received antitrust clearances in 5 of the 6 jurisdictions with Tanzania remaining. We remain on track to complete the CCBA transaction by the end of the year as planned, and we will share further updates in due course.

We have delivered a strong performance through the first 9 months of the year, which has enabled us to update our revenue guidance today, now expecting organic revenue growth slightly above our 6% to 7% range. As we continue to intentionally invest behind sustainable growth and drive a healthy algorithm, we are reiterating our guidance of 8% to 10% organic EBIT growth. Thank you for your attention. And with that, let us now open up the floor to your questions.

[Operator Instructions] We are now going to take our first question. And this one comes from Sanjeet Aujla from UBS.

Two questions from me, please. Firstly, on the outlook for '26, you've raised the top end guidance and not the organic EBIT guidance. Can you just walk us through the building blocks to that? What held you back from not upgrading the organic EBIT guidance? And my second question is just really on the COGS outlook as we go into next year. What sort of magnitude of escalation can we anticipate? And where are your hedges today? And with that, how are you thinking about the balance of pricing versus volume as we go into 2027?

Good morning, Sanjeet. So well, Anastasis and I will try to provide color on both of those. First of all, we reiterate or actually slightly update the guidance for the top line as we are really confident based on the all 3 quarters of this year with the execution of all the plans, and we really feel that we will be slightly above the guided range. We also have strong plans for Q4. So overall, that will wrap up what will be a pretty strong 2026. And for the bottom line, Anastasis.

Yes. As you heard from Zoran, we are very pleased with the quarter 3 performance, and this is giving us confidence in delivering on our organic EBIT guidance of 8% to 10% for the year, which I would like to remind that comes on the back of a very strong growth last year as well of 11.5%. Now the key drivers on reiterating the EBIT guidance, as you may recall in the half year results and also what we said from the beginning of the year, we were expecting half 2 to grow at a lower rate versus half 1 when it comes to EBIT and also top line on the back of 4 less selling days that we have in December versus the extra 4 selling days that we had in January. So there is a phasing element to that, and we have been saying that all along.

Now we also mentioned in the half year results that we expect to see higher cost pressures in the second half in relation to the ongoing Middle East conflict and overall fuel price crisis that has been building up around the situation. The other new element here, of course, is the challenging environment that we see in Ukraine with ongoing supply chain disruptions and which keeps the situation quite unpredictable. And as you would expect, there is an impact on profitability, but this is well captured within our 8% to 10% organic EBIT guidance.

And lastly, I would like to call out that as we have done in the first half where we have intentionally invested behind growth, we continue to do that also in the second half of the year in order to drive a healthy algorithm. So all in all, we are comfortable to reiterate our strong guidance of 8% to 10% and we feel that we will be delivering against those objectives.

And Sanjeet, you said for the next year, if I remember well, look, we see for next year that the guided range of 6% to 7% is an appropriate guide for the next year, where all 3 drivers of volume, price and mix will be active drivers, and we count on all of them to be the contributor to the revenue generation. To which extent each one will be, we will see, but probably a bit more balanced ratio between them next year than what we've seen this year where volume clearly was the dominant driver as we actually said and expected that it will be so.

Yes. And to come back on your COGS question, as I recall also for -- first, let me highlight that for the year, we expect COGS per case to increase by low to mid-single digits based on the visibility we have now. I want to call out that we have 100% coverage on our key commodities for the year. But if we want to look ahead for 2027, obviously, we'll provide more specific guidance in our February full year results call. However, what I can say today is that we would expect COGS inflation to be slightly higher in '27 versus '26 on the back of these inflationary pressures that we have seen across the globe in this case with key commodities, including sugar and PET. I want to highlight here that we are equally for next year engaged with our hedging positions. As you would expect at this time of the year, we are approximately 40% covered across key commodities, which is quite normal, and you would expect that to increase as we proceed in 2026.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one comes from Nadine Sarwat from Bernstein.

Two for me as well, please. First, your organic revenue per case growth of 3.4%. Can you give us a little bit more sense of how much of that was incremental pricing action in the quarter? And if so, in what markets versus existing pricing from earlier in the year versus positive mix? And then the second question, just on Ukraine. You commented on the down 20% volumes in the quarter that implies that September was very meaningfully down. Should we expect that same level of volume decline that you saw in September to continue into the fourth quarter? And am I correct in that, that's all factored into guidance?

In the overall buildup of the -- our price/mix, pricing had a solid part of that, I would say, probably 3/4 of that, but there is also a positive mix. And all that is also kind of balanced out on the other side with a negative country mix, which is a technical matter because it's logical that with the growth of Nigeria and Egypt, we know that we have the lower revenue per case over there, but that really doesn't matter in this case. So all that comes from pricing that has been taken throughout the year in a number of markets. As I said in the previous question, that's an absolutely active driver of our revenue growth generation, and it will be so always in the future. And then...

On Ukraine.

On Ukraine, look, what we have -- the situation we have from beginning of September is not the first time that it happens. First of all, and foremost, most importantly is that in any such situation and every single day, protection and safeguarding well-being and health and security of our people is the most important thing. Secondly, whenever something like this happens, we immediately activate contingency plans by bringing product from other countries in order to constantly serve our customers.

And lastly, I can say that the teams are very passionately working on restoring the operations in the country, taking fully into account that there is intensified level of air raids now every single day. So that slows down the speed of which the team can restore and normalize the operations, but this will happen. I cannot say exactly when, but in the next several weeks, a few months, we will gradually reactivate the operations in Ukraine and while also leveraging the imports from other markets.

The guidance, as I said before, the Ukraine disruption is captured in the range of the guidance we have provided.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Laurence Whyatt from Barclays.

A couple of questions for me as well, please. Firstly, on Nigeria, you had a very strong performance in Nigeria on volume terms. Of course, you had the 75th anniversary in the country. So I just want to understand how sustainable do you think this level of growth is going forward? Of course, next year, you don't have the same level of anniversaries to enjoy. So just wondering if that's a sort of sustainable rate or if we should expect a step down into next year? And then secondly, Switzerland, another market with strong improvement. I was just wondering what really happened in Switzerland in order to get that improvement up and again, whether that is a sustainable level of growth?

Laurence, so Nigeria, yes, this year, 1 of the things was 75 years, which was a remarkable milestone also leveraged by The Coca-Cola Company and our teams to really do excellent consumer activation and promotion, which was also a form of saying really thank you for the trust that they place in us. But this comes also in the mix of so many other initiatives of music activation, sports activation, constant food occasion activation. So all that comes together to give us this continuous sustainable strong performance in Nigeria.

Just to say that this is going to be the sixth consecutive year of driving market share gains. And this gives us confidence that next year as well, we have a very strong plans with a number of assets that we will activate together with The Coca-Cola Company as well as with other brand partners. So yes, this was -- this year was 75 years, but there is a lot in the pipeline for next year, which really makes us exciting and confident that Nigeria is going to have another strong year next year.

On Switzerland, this comes also from the fact that consumer confidence is recovering over the last 6 months and inflation is remaining very low by international standards. We also are operating this year in a continuously, let's say, normal trading level as last year, there was a period of time where we were also coming to an agreement with an important customer. So just the fact that we are on a normalized level enables the team to activate holistically, and we see that in the results because the results are really strong across the whole portfolio. Both in -- very strong in the at-home part of the market, but also we see also good results in the out-of-home. Single-serve particularly has been driving also quality of the growth. And all that has resulted that we are gaining share in the country. So Switzerland is an important market for us, and we are positive about continued growth in Switzerland also next year and in the years to come.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Aron Adamski from Goldman Sachs.

I have 2 questions. My first question is on 2027 profitability. I think earlier, you said that the 6% to 7% organic sales is a reasonable assumption as we head into next year. So I was wondering if you could please share your early perspectives around the key moving pieces on margins. And in particular, I was wondering if you remain confident on delivering your medium-term EBIT margin expansion target of 20 to 40 basis points during 2027. And my second question, I wanted to check in on the consumer environment. I guess, with the fuel and energy costs still elevated. I was wondering if you observed any changes in consumer behavior in any of your particular markets?

As you know, we will issue our 2027 detailed guidance with the full year results in '26 in February next year. So what I can say at this stage is that we remain confident in our levers to grow EBIT. It's not the first time that we face such challenging environment, and we have a good track record that we have managed to deliver all the time with both top line growth in a balanced manner and gain shares and also improve profitability. As Zoran highlighted earlier, we need to understand that we are fully aware of the external cost pressures, and we would expect to grow on the top line in a more balanced manner between volume and price mix.

So -- and the key levers that we are building on, as always, is our toolkit behind our RGM capabilities that they have proven in the past, and they will continue to be relevant for us to drive growth. I want to call out also our strong risk management framework, which is on the back of our initiatives on hedging as well as suppliers agreements to ensure that we have the right availability, but also cost optimization. And with that one, I want to call out how we have always been focused on productivity and efficiency that has been both working on COGS and OpEx and 2027 will not be a different year. Such efficiencies, as we have said in the past, not only to flow down to the profitability and the margin, but also we have been reinvesting those to drive further growth and ensure long-term deliverable. So we are confident that we'll be able to navigate in this environment and still bring good EBIT growth for CCH.

Aron, on the consumer environment, we don't see any significant shift versus what we've seen in the previous quarters. So fairly good resilience, respecting that there is a broad-based need for affordability propositions and solutions, which we are doing as part of our RGM in every single market. But we also see how consumers are reacting in a very good way with the consumer activations and events where we activate all the great assets, whether that's the FIFA, which was spectacular really this year. Other sports events at the back of sponsorships with a number of sports clubs, various marathons that we are partnering with or music events.

So we really see good reactions and participations and demand from consumers. Also, same is valid for the innovation pipeline to which consumers have reacted in a very positive way. And therefore, innovations are the important contributor to this overall volume and revenue growth. So all in all, nothing dramatically different, and we've seen good resilient consumer demand, which I also have to say that is a result of the anticipated and very good plans that we've done with our partners and which we are executing in a very, very strong way.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Matthew Ford from BNP Paribas.

So just 1 question actually from me. And it's on CCBA. So I think Coca-Cola reported their Q3 update last week, and they gave a bit of color around their sort of expectations from a scope perspective for next year, talking to kind of 2% of EPS for them from CCBA in 2027. Now obviously, these are rough numbers, and there's a lot of rounding. But roughly speaking, it would imply in euro terms, something north of EUR 250 million of net profit for that business. If I look at consensus, as we have it, the kind of EBIT number for consensus in CCBA is only just a little bit higher than that. So I just wanted to get your thoughts, if you can give them on that. And is the kind of low single-digit accretion assumption that you mentioned 12 months ago, is that still valid? Or potentially, is there some upside to that?

Yes. Matthew, as you know, we're not yet the owners of CCBA. So I cannot share information with respect to the CCBA's financial performance and how this looks like. And also regarding Coca-Cola's disclosure, that would be a question to them on how they have assessed on what they're reflecting. What I can say and I can confirm is that our expectation remains for the acquisition to be low single-digit EPS accretive from the first year of completion, and that has not changed.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Andrea Pistacchi from Bank of America.

I have just a couple of follow-ups on COGS, please. So you said that COGS inflation should be slightly higher next year. Would you be expecting meaningful differences in the sort of cost inflation across regions, established, developing and emerging? And then I think you said that you are around 40% hedged for next year, which is a normal level. And with Energy prices still very volatile, how much could the picture change from here, potentially improve if oil and gas prices come down? And with that in mind, if -- I mean, if the cost outlook could change still quite a bit. How flexible can you be with your pricing initiatives?

Yes. Andrea, quite a variety of scenarios and developments that could take place, right? And we have seen that the environment remains quite volatile. What I can say is that 1 of our key toolkits here is the rigorous scenario planning and execution in the marketplace to adapt or address such type of developments, positive or negative in that case. What I said before is that today, we are currently at 40% -- above 40% coverage on key commodities. To your question on energy and probably utilities, I guess, what you mean by that is that, that's hedging capability, which is limited to European markets and some of the European markets. So that's something that is not across all geographies.

But in general, the few key commodities like sugar and aluminum and PET is more or less standard across. And it's not just a matter of hedging contracts and derivatives. It's also a matter of long-lasting relationships with our suppliers to ensure availability, which has been the case so far and also be able to address certain activities. I also highlighted that when it comes to seeing COGS, it's not only a matter of hedging, it's also the productivity initiatives that we have in place. We're undergoing those. We will continue to hedge such also for '27. It's nothing new to that. And in relation to pricing in the market, as I said, that will be a more balanced approach. We do expect a more balance between volume and price mix, and that will continue to be the case also in '27.

Got it. And any -- sorry, just on any difference between sort of cost inflation in emerging markets versus the European markets? Should we expect any meaningful difference there?

I wouldn't call out any meaningful differences. You also have to take into consideration there is an FX element also in some of the emerging markets like Nigeria, Egypt, if you have in mind. So that has been playing out in a way. So I think on average, is what I said for the group, we would expect to see it slightly higher in '27 than in '26.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Simon Hales from Citi.

So just a couple, please. So can we just go back to the established market performance, very strong volume delivery in the quarter, Zoran, you called out and talked about Switzerland. I wonder if there are any other particular markets that you think really sort of drove that strong performance? And I know it's difficult to always break these things out, but how much of a driver do you think the weather was across established for you in Q3?

And then secondly, on emerging markets and particularly Ukraine, is the right way to think about how Ukraine might develop through Q4 that the volume picture will improve because you have put in place your contingency plans to get volumes into the market. But clearly, that's going to be weighing on profitability given the costs associated with that? And also, is there any other sort of emerging markets where we're seeing maybe a little bit more of an affordability weighing on the consumer, perhaps some of the smaller markets we don't talk about very often, Bulgaria, Moldova, et cetera? And if I could just sneak in 1 quick technical. Can you remind us for 2027, what the selling day moves are by quarter, if there are any, please?

Simon, I hope I remembered everything you asked. So to start with on the established, it's really broad-based, very good performance in the segment where I would pause on, I would really highlight a very good performance of Italy, which was at this level of mid-single digits and very pleased with pretty broad-based performance. Ireland has been continuously performing well throughout the year. Greece had a good step-up in Q3 also versus Q2. And Austria as well is having a very good year. So overall, very strong performance across, reflected in gaining market shares, winning in the market, driving single-serve mix. So overall, very pleased with all the markets in the segment, and we do expect the Established segment next year as well as the other segments to be the positive contributors to the growth.

Then Ukraine. Yes. Look, it's so unpredictable. Planning here is really like a lottery because it's fair to say that with an intensified level of the war activities on the ground that simply we would -- and what we assume is that Ukraine is not going to be at the level of last year simply because our supply is unreliable, like for everyone else, simply because of the intensified air alarms that are happening. So even the importing product is not easy logistically if the country is going through all these disruptions. But also the impacts on the demand side as the -- simply the shops and bars or customers cannot be continuously open as they were more in the past. So we will do our every effort with an amazing passionate team that are serving customers to do the maximum we can. And whatever they will do, we know that they are doing their absolute best. But for your purposes, I would not assume that they will be at the same level as last year. And as Anastasis said earlier, this is reflected in the guidance that we are providing.

And then on the emerging markets, look, clearly, there are a few markets where the affordability is more prominent and the consumers are on a softer side. Romania has consistently have been seeing challenges that in the market due to many regulatory and political factors that country is going through. We've seen also a softer consumer environment in Bulgaria, which is also in the first year of euro introduction. So that has some impact apparently. Ukraine, I mentioned, but other than that, we see other markets really performing well, primarily Nigeria and Egypt really doing very well with a strong set of affordability-related initiatives. And selling days in '27, we don't see that there is any similar impact like we've seen in '26. And then whatever that is, we will reflect that in our guidance that we will provide in the February call.

[Operator Instructions] We are now going to take the next question. And this one comes from Richard Withagen from Kepler Cheuvreux.

Just 2 questions from me. I'll ask them 1 by 1. First, on Italy, you mentioned it just a moment ago, Zoran, but Italy appears to have moved from a period of volume weakness, particularly in water, to much more broad-based growth in Q2. Are you now comfortable with the composition of the portfolio and the balance between volume growth and profitability? Or is there still work to do perhaps on consumer, on channel mix? That's my first question.

Richard, look, I think on Italy, if I understood well, first of all, I really want to say that Italy has been having a pretty solid performance, and Q3 is another reflection of that where we see that it's really across the categories. Sparkling had a very good growth driven as always, with the Zero variant, where Coke Zero is driving mid-single-digit growth. Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine is having excellent triple-digit performance. Very pleased in flavors with how Sprite is performing. Adults also performed very well because of Lurisia and Three Cents and energy, water, sports. So first of all, very comprehensive and across the -- both parts of the market, at home and out-of-home, driving single-serve mix, and we are gaining share.

So we are confident and happy with the strategy and focused on consumer, shopper and channel development. In Italy, for last number of years, we are consistently investing in the market where we have a very strong team supporting the whole at-home part of the market, but we are also intentionally developing our capacity and capability to serve away-from-home part of the market. And all this is reflected in the performance, which is good on both on the top line level and also bottom line. Richard, does that answer your question?

Yes, that's clear, Zoran. And the second question is, I know this is a sales call, but I wanted to ask about free cash flow this year. First of all, would it be fair to assume CapEx to sales at around 7% this year? And then on working capital, does the selling day phasing in Q4 or the rising input costs have any impact on working capital needs?

Yes. Richard, so as we have said also in our half year call, we are pleased with the free cash flow generation that we have, which is at the back of maintaining our 6.5% to 7.5% range of CapEx investments, and we are on track to deliver this level of investments as well for this year. So -- and we believe that we'll be landing on a year with another good free cash flow generation. All of those are captured, of course, within the phasing of the period, right? So within the phasing that we have seen, it's still reflected within the guidance that we have provided.

And Anastasis, if I can press you a little bit there. Is it -- could we expect higher free cash flow this year compared to '25? I mean, I think it was a little bit lower in the first half. What's the outlook for the full year?

I would say that similar levels is a fair statement, considering the fact that there is a step-up also in CapEx this year.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Ed Hockin from JPMorgan.

Just 2, please. 1 is a follow-up on the established markets question earlier. I think you said you would expect it to contribute to growth in '27. Can I just ask from a volume standpoint, this year clearly looks very strong and has had some weather benefit. Are you able to quantify how much help favorable weather has been. And as we look at volumes in 2027, should we expect that established markets see some volume normalization or what you have in your commercial plans to continue to grow volumes in this region?

And then my second question is on Egypt, where clearly you showcased your impressive capabilities at your recent investor visit there. It looks as though volumes have continued in high single digits even against a tougher comp. So can you give more details on what you're seeing in Egypt from a market standpoint, your own share performance and how we should think about Egypt heading into '27 as well?

So on the established -- so I think you mentioned on the weather, I did call out weather as being 1 of the factors. Clearly, it was a tailwind, but I really can't put my finger how much it was because I contribute more of the performance to very strong plans that we had for the quarter and how they were executed. And on top of that, yes, weather was not a detractor, and that really enabled us to have that kind of performance. How we think about it going forward, yes, volume will be positive in the segment in the next year. I would say that low single-digit volume level is fair to assume at the back of strong plans that we are preparing together with The Coca-Cola Company, Monster and other partners.

On Egypt, country is really having a very good another year. Q3 performance really was at the back of very strong cycling of last year. And Q4 will also be -- is having very tough comps, but we are confident that performance of Egypt will be rounded also in Q4 to call it a very strong 2026. At the beginning of the year -- we at the beginning of the year, we had slight share losses as we anticipated. But as we also forecasted, we see in the several last months how we are gaining share. And no question, and there is a full confidence that both in Sparkling with a strong affordability initiatives and premiumization initiatives that we are doing in the country, we will continue performing well.

I really want to emphasize also the strong work that is happening in constantly ramping up and building capabilities in the country, whether that's revenue growth management or route to market, which is continuously evolving capabilities of our sales teams that are going through our sales academy programs and certifications. Innovation, I called out 0.5-liter launch that we did. There is a great Schweppes purple launch that we have done in the country. So there are exciting things that will happen in the next year that we will rightly include in the plans, and I'm to wrap up confident in another growth year of Egypt.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Edward Mundy from Jefferies.

So I've got 1 question, but it's a sort of 3-part question, if that's okay. So it's been about a year since the reshuffle in Atlanta where you've had a new CEO. You've had some quite big changes to the commercial organization under Manolo and now Roberto and then a much bigger emphasis on digital and data with Sedef. So the first sort of part of the question is with Henrique, I think he's got a big focus on growth. Has anything changed with regards to his ambition to do things differently for CCH, number 1. On the commercial side, has anything changed to help complement all the good work you're doing on RGM mix and your strong execution? And then on the data and IT side, I know you're doing a lot sort of piloting on AI, but has there any been any more sort of sharing of data and tech to again help accelerate your business and drive the top line?

Yes, on The Coca-Cola Company, and I think maybe a few quarters ago, I was asked -- there was a similar question where I really said that the -- this is the evolution story from James to Henrique, and we see how well that transition has really worked, and we really see a strong bold ambition drive for growth for the overall system globally. I think this is reflected if you see in The Coca-Cola Company results as well as in the results of our own as well as other bottlers. So I would really say that system globally is on a very healthy place, but with nimbleness that we really want to get better every single day in -- as Henrique say, in what we are doing already best, but also continuously also recognizing what we can do together.

I'm very excited with the way we partner and work together. And I think that's 1 of the drivers of us winning together in the market, and that gives me huge confidence with Henrique's ambitions for the system, for The Coca-Cola Company and our own that we really have strong teams, great plans and alignment that is constructive and is really driving force. I mean I could talk a lot about this, but bottom line, super excited with what we can and we will do together. This is also reflected in the way we work together in the revenue growth management. It is a joint capability because there are parts of the -- in the RGM framework that Coca-Cola Company brings to the table as well as then what we really do. And as the last mile operator and part of the system, we are at the delivering end touch point and with our customers where we deliver the whole variety of initiatives that we come together as part of the RGM framework.

And exactly right, you mentioned data because this is the, I think, competitive edge that we have because the breadth and abundance of data that we have as a system from The Coca-Cola Company side and from Coca-Cola Hellenic side is really exactly what makes the difference that we can leverage this data through fantastic segmentation, both on the side of consumer as well as on the side of the customer. And that is visible in a big initiative that we are doing in Nigeria called Ignite Naija, where exactly that's what we are doing. Putting our joint data together to make it work in a smarter, faster way, giving us sharper insights and what we need to do and where. And I'm very excited how these things is evolving year-by-year.

In Nigeria, which started as a pilot, we are now live across the full market with all customers, and we do see that it's driving -- it's part of the reason that you see strong performance in Nigeria. But overall, our approach is that we leverage each other's data in a way that we can strengthen capabilities like RGM. And for that matter, we are both investing in more in technology and AI in a very meaningful, responsible and relevant way.

And if I could follow up. I mean, the pilot in Nigeria, is that something that might be replicated across other markets as well?

Yes, sure. That's what we are also learning what other parts of the system are doing in a similar way. We had excellent global system visit together with -- led by Henrique under the umbrella of AI and digital and how we, as a system, in that space, we recognize who does best and how we can lift and shift best practices globally. And we do see that what we are doing in Nigeria is and will be replicable both in Africa as well as beyond.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Javier Gonzalez-Lastra from Berenberg.

So I had a question on developing margins in Poland specifically. H1 organic EBIT was up only 1.8% on revenue up 9%. Poland Stills fell double digits and Energy grew low teens, down from high teens in H1. Did the 4.8% revenue per case rebuild margin in Q3? And is the Stills decline structural after the deposit return scheme? And my follow-up is on concentrate. The Coca-Cola Company's concentrate sales run 2 points ahead of case volume in Q3 and expects a slight destocking in Q4. Are you carrying extra concentrate? And does this potentially affect Q4 gross margins?

Javier, let me start with the last question first. I mean, the levels of concentrate are always planned in relation to the needs we have, and we always keep the necessary safety stock to ensure availability of capacity. We don't have any capacity constraints and to meet the market needs. So I don't have anything particular or any special to comment on that one. To your question about Poland and the overall Developing segment, but what I want to highlight is that in the first half of the year, we had also an increase in marketing investments, as a reminder, which was across the group and also particularly in this segment with the FIFA World Cup activation and a step-up in people costs behind capabilities and a higher headcount to reflect the market needs, particularly in the Developing segments in countries like Hungary and Croatia. So I will reiterate what we said in our call that for the second half of the year, we do expect the improvement in the EBIT in the segment and an improvement in profitability overall. We don't provide more details at this stage. We will share all details in the year-end.

And on the Stills decline, if it's structural post the deposit return scheme?

On Poland, what we have -- what we can say is that the Stills were mainly on the backdrop of certain challenges that we see in the category, like mainly water in this case. But we are very pleased with the performance of Sparkling and Energy, which had a significant step-up and Energy, double digit, low teens and Sparkling a good volume growth in the quarter, which continued -- and also price mix, which improved versus quarter 2. So we are very pleased with the performance we saw and the comeback in Poland and the overall Developing segment.

We are now going to take the next question. And this one is from Charlie Higgs from Rothschild & Co.

My first question is on Romania, where I think Q3 volumes were soft against quite a soft comparison and the country has been a bit subdued for a few years now. I was just wondering, Zoran, from a price pack architecture or portfolio perspective, like how do you think about reigniting growth in Romania? Because it doesn't feel like the consumer environment is going to get much better anytime soon. That's my first question.

Look, we see the pattern that Romania is going through is similar to what we've seen for a couple of years in Hungary, where when you have a sequence of several years of regulatory changes, which means the VAT increase, excise tax, introduction of DRS and all that happening in the macro political environment, which could benefit from more stability. Simply, this does impact the overall market as we also hear from our customers with whom we are obviously intensively talking. So it's a period where we need to be patient and to do what is right and build this business for the years to come.

I'm very -- I'm really confident that with a more of stabilization in the market, with the strong plans that we have for the market together that we are preparing with The Coca-Cola Company for next year, RGM evolution to adjust and be adapted to the reality of the market. I know that the team is, as a matter of fact, today having a working session exactly on the RGM and our pack price architecture. So the team is working full speed on preparation, and I'm confident that Romania will restore its well-known performance. We also see that in this type of environment, we are gaining share. So in those relative terms, we see that we are gaining share both in NARTD as well as Sparkling, and that's even been accelerated in the last month. And I see that same goes for Energy share increase, sports, water and our overall commercial beverages. So a little bit of tough spot for the country, but we have patience and resilience, and I have no doubt that the moment environment a little bit stabilizes that we will see Romania back to absolute volume and revenue growth.

And then my follow-up was just pressing for a bit more color on Italy, please, where I think, as we said earlier, volumes up mid-single digit ex selling days, that's the strongest performance in quite a few years, and the country didn't have any FIFA benefit, not just commenting as an England fan. So could you maybe just provide a little bit more color on the performance by channel, how strong Coke Zero and Zero Zero performing and if they're recruiting new consumers? And then how you're thinking about Italy going forward into next year with some of the innovation you've seen and the plans you've got in place?

Yes, Charlie, tough reminder on FIFA, yes. However, football remains passion point. And that's why together with The Coca-Cola Company, we are engaging and partnering with a number of clubs in Italy that we are already working, and we will further strengthen that in the future, which clearly connects very well with the brands that we carry and also with the interest and passion of consumers. So I'm very positive about that. Secondly, the development across channels works well, and we are progressing constantly with the development, both in at home and away from home. Over the last couple of years, we have intentionally increased capacity to serve the market by adding more market developers into the market.

And I see year-by-year how our capability of covering and -- that part of the market, constantly increasing the penetration, recruiting new customers is really going in the right direction. And that helps us to achieve these type of results when you see Coca-Cola Zero constantly growing faster than the average rate of growth. It's almost every quarter with a double-digit growth. For sure, in Q3, it's been this mid-single digits. And Coke Zero, Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine is performing extremely well. So that really gives us the confidence that in the market, there is so many opportunities for growth. It is established type of market, but with lots of per capita opportunity that we are going after. And I'm very excited on the opportunities and what we will be delivering in Italy also going forward. Does that help, Charlie?

There are no further questions for today. I will now hand the call back to Zoran for closing remarks.

Well, thank you, operator. I'd like to thank everyone for taking part in today's call, and I look forward to catching up with you again soon. Wishing you all a great day. Thank you. Bye-bye.

Thank you. This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

Well, thank you all very much for joining us at the Barclays Global Conference again today. I'm very pleased to have Zoran Bogdanovic from CCH, CEO of CCH, joining us. So we're going to have an interesting discussion about the evolution of Coke across a lot of European and African markets.

Zoran, why don't we kick off with the first half because you had a very strong set of figures. Were you happy with how the first half went? What were the highlights? And where are the sort of key areas you're looking to improve things?

Thank you, Laurence. We are very happy with the first half. I mean it came as a result of very hard work of really working close with customers, focusing on executing excellent initiatives that we had in the first half, of which, of course, the FIFA World Cup was highlight, but that also overlapped with our preparation for the season, which was really done well.

So all that resulted in this very strong 9.6% and 7.5% volume, which is acceleration of our underlying volume versus Q1. Very pleased with the profit improvement that that resulted with. And I'd like to highlight that we are very happy with the consistency that this is 13th quarter in a row consecutively of having volume growth. So for us, even in the times when there was a quite inflationary environment, where price mix was a big thing, we really maintain focus that in the overall -- RGM and volume and mix and price -- all have to play their role. So it's easy to say I'm pleased. That's why I'm just elaborating more, like, why that there is consistency and quality and focus, and kudos to the teams for really doing that.

What we can do better is that, look, every day, we are looking whenever anything doesn't work. And for that, we have our own internal listening. All employees are rating our own functions. We are constantly identifying and listen where maybe there are pain points, where we need to improve processes, where we have to be faster. So there are always opportunities to improve, and I love this mindset that it's never good enough. We recognize that it's good, but there is so much more that we do. And we put also our foot where our mouth is, that we also invest more behind initiatives together with our partners, starting with Coca-Cola Company, but then we are also investing in our own capabilities capacity, digital, AI, all kind of things, which can always and continuously make us better.

You mentioned profitability there, and I couldn't help but notice your profitability result for the first half was well in excess of where the guidance is for the full year. So I guess that sort of assumes a bit of a slowdown in the second half. What really gives you cause to concern around the second half, and sort of what needs to happen in order to hit the high end of the range versus the low end of the range?

Look, this first half, I just referred to, gave us confidence to do this update and upgrade of the guidance, clearly. Having done that beginning of August, we recognize the fact that there are 4 days less in Q4, particularly in December, which is a big trading period for us. So we have to take that into account. We did say at the beginning of the year that our split between H1 and H2 will be more skewed towards H1.

Then we simply have to recognize also that any week, many things can happen. We know very well that we are managing through this situation in Ukraine -- between Ukraine and Russia. You never know what happens there. Equally, Middle East -- I mean, we literally see it these days. We do see in many of our countries the impact on the energy cost. How will possibly this trickle down on the consumer behavior? Because sometimes you really see that consumers have this cliff behavior. Everything is fine until one day when suddenly they start maybe pulling the brake.

So while we feel confident about the full year outlook for which we did upgrade. We have a very good program, what's ahead of us for the remainder of the year, but we simply have to be responsible in recognizing many variables to which we don't have an answer. So that's how it all comes together.

I want to come back to some of the volatility you mentioned. But I suppose as part of that, we have seen a bit of a change in consumer sentiment in a number of markets, which you alluded to. Where are the key areas where you're seeing that pressure? Are there any markets you'd really call out, where the consumer is perhaps a little bit more under pressure from these increased costs?

Well, overall headline would be that there is nothing dramatically different, materially different versus last year. We know that already from last year, we went into this year preparing that consumers in general have more sensitivity and more need for affordability. So in our overall revenue growth management umbrella, affordability plays an important role, yet affordability in country X versus country Y is different. But it's very well embedded what we do there, and I can elaborate more. But particularly, there are a few markets where that sensitivity and elasticity is bigger.

Romania, which simply in a sequence of several years now has been going through some regulatory changes of VAT, of sugar tax, of DRS. So it has to boil down on the consumer -- or we see more politically-driven in Bulgaria, they are getting used to the fact that they are now with euro. We know that sometimes it really creates bump in the prices overall and of course, Ukraine.

On the other hand, you see countries that are -- continue to perform strong this year and in sequence of last year, Hungary, Czech, you see Ireland. Switzerland had a very good first half. I'm also pleased how also Italy went through the first half. So we see a number of markets. Austria had a very good bounce back because last year, they were dealing with their own DRS introduction. So in balance, we do see that still consumers, while being mindful, they are the ones with which we delivered these results. And we feel responsible that we constantly pulse and read how they are and that we dynamically react with adjusting initiatives whenever needed.

And of course, this is going to affect your own cost line as well. You're going to be exposed to some of the raw materials that have been inflating as a result of these various changes. What levers can you still pull in order to mitigate those increased costs? And would you expect pricing to have to materially step up as we go into next year?

Look, I like -- even in this, I like football analogy. Best way to defend yourself is to attack. And we've been always front-footed and focused on driving top line growth. I think that's the best way to drive cost leverage. To drive top line growth is infinite. With costs, there is a floor.

So that's why our investments behind the 24/7 portfolio that we are developing with a number of categories, where each one of them play their role in a given market, where with our partners we are actually stepping up investments in marketing exactly for that reason that we can support broader portfolio range and brands that we do with excellent initiatives, with supporting more events where we give consumers and customers really chance to activate our products, drive transactions more.

Also, we see that with digital -- actually, first of all, I would say that one of the key areas where we are investing through digital and with the support of meaningful AI is micro-segmentation, because that really helps us to deploy our assets and investments in a much more targeted, relevant way. In the past, way back, it was like one size fits all. Now we know that for certain brands, even for certain packages, these are the types of outlets we really need to go versus the other ones. So that increases our effectiveness of resources that we deploy and the time of our people.

So all that plays a role. Then not to be misunderstood, we have every year productivity initiatives that's constant where we are constantly finding ways of increasing productivity, enhancing efficiencies, reducing costs wherever necessary. And that also plays a role. I'm also very happy with the very robust governance that we have with the overall hedging approach that we do in our purchases of materials. So when you blend that all together, I feel that there is a lot that is in our control even in these circumstances. And that's one of the key learnings that we have from last 6, 7 years, from COVID onwards, that irrespective of what's going on, there is a lot in our hands that we can react, and we do have tools and resources to do that.

And just staying on the topic of volatility, of course, you're very acutely exposed to the Russia-Ukraine situation. You mentioned the Middle East earlier. We've had this FX volatility across Africa, and for which you're going to have increased exposure to with the closure of the CCBA deal. How is your framework of managing these sort of geopolitical currency type risks evolved? And what do you consider resilience really looks like once you consider the consolidation of CCBA?

Look, even before COVID, we had -- because I mentioned that period because that changed so many things in how we run, constantly run scenario simulations, risk management, which again is based on a number of estimating various scenarios. But our academy for that was Nigeria. This is where we went through all kinds of things, and we went through political, macro, fiscal, supplier issues, all kinds of things tested us there, from which we were capturing learnings, which really came useful then in a number of other territories of running scenarios.

Even when every single country, when they present business plan, of course, they have to have one core scenario. But then there are risks and opportunities and there is scenario, how can it look more on upside and what if things go -- and what could go wrong. So our people are empowered to bring their own locally relevant knowledge and insight and their own understanding. And I think that's the strength of our model, where we rely on the expertise of our general managers and the local country teams to really bring that. So they identify what are the possible things that can potentially be worse. And immediately, they are asked to tell us, okay, if that happens, what do you do? So there is a constant iterative way of what if with quantification.

So if we see that all the risks come down to amount x, we have to see if that happens, how will we overcome it? We don't leave that now, 'Well, let's see if it happens', and then something happens in April. If something happens in April to think through, then it's late. We have to have already some thinking in that.

And also, we, as a Hellenic overall management team, we constantly are out there on the search for more opportunities where we can unfold something that we haven't been doing so far. It's always more on the commercial front, where are the additional customers, how we can work better and closer with them. So I correlate that also with the way we constantly increase the intimacy and loyalty with our customers, which is reflected in a constant growth of our NPS score with them and listening. And that's where we get lots of ideas that -- this is a time where curiosity has to be at its best. You never know what's tomorrow. But solutions are there. It's only a matter of us allowing ourselves and to be disciplined to listen, never underestimate. Everyone has a view.

When we talk and walk with our market developers, it's so useful to listen to them what they think. You get great ideas when you talk to line operator. I mean, these people have great ideas. So it's our responsibility to listen. And as much as this might sound trivial, but this overall also plays a role.

It sounds very similar to our job as well. The best ideas come from the team. So I want to talk a little bit about some of your markets. Just let's start off with the emerging side of things because, of course, I think you're getting a lot of questions on that space, and it's a lot of change happening there. Many of us came out to Egypt with you a few months ago now. And I suppose when I saw the aspirations of getting double-digit growth every year, it sort of appears relatively lofty until you see it on the ground. So for those who weren't able to travel to Egypt, how do you -- why are you so confident you're able to deliver growth at that sort of level?

Yes. Well, it was great to have you and others on July 7, for this day in Cairo. And I can encourage anyone who would like to listen to that. It's available on our website to listen what we shared very openly that day.

We believe that from the moment we decided to go after this acquisition in agreement with Coca-Cola Company, we were then and now even more excited about the immense opportunity that this country offers. First of all, the size of 110-plus million people that is going in the right direction when you see the whole infrastructural development and many things what -- how the country is progressing. And within that context to -- we know that this market is far from its developed level.

So investing further, prioritizing commercial capabilities to be able to deliver on the great portfolio that we have there, making meaningful additions right from the start, where apart from the focus on sparkling and water, which were 2 key categories there, then we started also with energy, which was proven as the right thing, and that has provided more additional growth, relevance to our customers.

So we immediately invested in raising the commercial capabilities, which starts from even basics. Every single salesperson has gone through sales academy to learn, re-learn on the way how we educate all of our people and train them constantly to be able to more effectively and better connect with customers.

And seeing the market in June, when we had all general managers meeting in the north of Egypt, and then later on when we were there together, it's mind-blowing to see the difference of 18 months, how much has been achieved. And not only for the business that we have in Egypt for the unit itself, but we also use Egypt for our broader capability development. In July, we opened our new digital hub in Cairo, where currently we have 250 people. By Q3 next year, we will have 450. And that's part of the intentional in-sourcing specific roles and capabilities that we want to have in-house for various solutions, platforms that we are developing, as they are forming the competitive advantage that we then, through those solutions, deploy in all countries.

So I would say the joint belief, commitment with our partners, Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy, knowing what needs to be done, the right locally relevant investments and then deploying them with a great disciplined focus. So we are ambitious. That's why we say that this is a market that has to be double-digit. It has to.

Now can it happen at 1 year, it's not double-digit? Yes, if God knows what happens. But we have to be ambitious. If you are not ambitious with this type of market and say that it needs to be double-digit growth, then what else? Which market can be? So -- and when we have the strong ambition, that's pushing us to really constantly think what do we do more? How do we do better? And Egypt is really market for something like that.

And of course, it was an acquisition a few years ago, and you're expected to close the CCBA deal later on this year. How transferable are the learnings that you've taken from integrating Egypt to the CCBA business? What's similar? What's more different?

Many things are transferable. For us, 4 years ago, integration of Egypt was a great learning ground. And we reflected what were the things that really went well. We also incorporated some of the learnings that we saw we can do even better.

So now myself and my team, we personally, and -- every one of us has personal ownership for all the chapters of the integration plan that we are developing, that we started from January, from the moment CCBA closed its books of 2025. We really didn't want to touch them, leave them alone to do that. But then from end of January, we really started a very disciplined, systematic approach in preparing, in parallel, while all the regulatory process work was happening.

And as it's soon, sometime Q4 -- will happen that the closing really happens. We -- I'm confident how ready we will be for day 1. But we also phased all the thoughts and ideas and initiatives, okay, what's day 1 and first 6 months, what's 6 to 12 months and beyond. We cannot do everything at the same time. We need to respect that there is -- it needs to be faced.

So many things are transferable. I also have to highlight that we also need to never forget -- while many things are transferable, we have to be respectful that every single market within CCBA has its own dynamics and insights. We need to learn that. And that will happen through on-site visits, meeting our teams, customers, to really understand what are the specificities of every market.

End of July, we went for the first visit, South Africa, Tanzania, Ethiopia. It was fantastic to really learn on the ground. And I can tell you, Laurence, if anything, when we finished the trip, we really were boosted. We can really see tremendous opportunity.

I look forward to many bite-sized trips in the years to come. When you talk about these markets, which are the ones that you see as the biggest opportunities? And maybe some of the markets that we haven't spent a huge amount of time on, where do you see the most opportunities?

Look, unsurprisingly, the largest market, South Africa, is the biggest opportunity. It's really the backbone of CCBA. It's a phenomenal market with so many opportunities. It's already a great business, but we really see that we can provide more tailwind to do wider, maybe more things.

But then beyond the obvious of South Africa, Kenya, I'm impressed with Ethiopia, I mean, size of 140 million people. And the country slowly but surely is getting in the right direction. We were impressed with the quantity of development that we observed in Addis Ababa. Next year, they are having COP 32. That's a big thing that puts Ethiopia on a global stage and entrance of international players slowly getting there. We've seen a team that is very ambitious, very knowledgeable, competent. So it's for us to really see how do we support them more, give them more tools, more resources because they clearly know what they want to do, and they are, for sure, not lacking ambition.

And then Tanzania was another market that really loved seeing specificities, great country. Many of these markets are on a level of development that has abundance of per capita consumption opportunity, development of the categories, introduction of some of the categories or packages that they at the moment don't have. That's why from the moment we take over, we will see in the first years that we will need to support them with some more investments because for the car to go faster, we'll need to pour some fuel so that it can really then prepare it for sustainable, profitable growth.

You mentioned the Q4 completion. Do you have any updates on approvals or anything that's been approved recently?

Yes. There are last 2 approvals of South Africa and Tanzania that are pending. But all of that is progressing well, and we feel very confident that now in Q4, this is going to be completed.

Okay. And just staying on Africa, you've seen quite a big volume acceleration in Nigeria. What was the key reason behind that? Was there a bit of lower pricing? And is there a bit of a risk that we see increased competition now that we've seen a bit lower FX pressure?

No, no, no. I think consistency of performance in Nigeria comes as a result of many things coming together. First of all, capability of -- not only of the management team and their determination and focus and discipline, but overall capability of the organization, when we see and walk the streets with market developers, to really see how they guide us when they explain what they do, how they do, how they are leveraging all the tools that we introduced to Nigeria, even as a testing ground.

When we started with RGM, Nigeria was in the first wave. When we started with data insights analytics from 2020, Nigeria was the first one there. The first global pilot of the use case of micro-segmentation with Coca-Cola Company and us together was in Nigeria. So we are constantly enhancing the capability of the country that it is able to deliver on very strong brand marketing initiatives that we do together with Coca-Cola Company, with Monster, and even with other brand partners that we have in that country.

So it can sound simple, know what are the relevant initiatives that we have to do marketing-wise, which are connected with passion points that consumers in Nigeria have. They make it easy for us because the way they love music, the way they love football, and the way they socialize and they gather around meals, make it very simple to focus consistently behind these 3 points. Now the challenge is on our own creativity, how do we do that?

And we've seen how Coke Studio there transformed into one of the best ones globally, the way football is activated. And I think that we will only see the new way of doing that when now we activate English Premier League on an insight that you have more EPL fans in Nigeria than in U.K. People are crazy about football. So now thankfully, we have that great asset of EPL that we can activate in Nigeria, and we will do that.

Actually, next week next week, we are in Nigeria, where first, we will celebrate 75 years of the company that started in 1951. So we have a big event for our stakeholders in Abuja. And then we have our Board meeting in Lagos. And of course, before the meeting, we are going to the market to really see what is being done.

So -- and lastly, Laurence, even in the times when there were quite some challenges with hard currency accessibility, with devaluation, we were not in a half-pregnant state. We knew that we believe in Nigeria. We know how tremendous potential it has, and we kept investing. You know very well that many companies have left Nigeria in some past years. That never crossed our mind. And now we see that some of them are looking how to come back because this is a country of tremendous growth potential.

And the result that you also see this year is just a result of continuous focused investments and work. So I don't correlate it with any lower pricing. It's an RGM work, where it's perfectly fine that now is the time when volume has to drive more of the revenue generation. But there is always some level of pricing there that's healthy and that's needed and it's there.

And speaking of a very volatile market in Ukraine, it's completely understandable that it's very challenging, given where the conflict is. There was some news of recent damage to one of the Coke production facilities in Kyiv. So I was wondering if you could give us an update on that. But also, how do your teams continue to deliver some pretty strong results in the face of such daily challenges?

Look, first of all, I need to recognize our team in Ukraine for heroic work that they are doing in most unbelievable circumstances, where -- they're in the street visiting customers or producing, there is an alarm, go back in the shelter, come back out. And they really serve as an inspiration to all of us. Our biggest and utmost priority there is that we always secure -- make sure that everyone is safe, that we do everything in our power to support them and families in staying protected, which so far, I think we've been doing really well.

What you referenced, yes, and it's not the first time that our manufacturing facility was impacted by -- among many of the attacks that were happening. So this happened on last week, 7 to 10 days ago, where limited impact has happened on our factory, with certain damage there, which is not enabling us to produce simply because we will need to first clean all of that and do some repairment. But most importantly, we were alerted. We knew that attack was coming. Everyone was evacuated. No one was harmed. So most importantly, on human element, everyone remains safe.

So as I said, it already happened a few times before. As so far, we have repaired, brought everything up and running, and this is what we will do also this time. Our team and all of us are committed to do that, but always done in a fully safe way.

Our also leverage is that whenever -- and if we are not temporarily able to produce in Ukraine, which is a big factory of ours, then other countries are there to support with contingency supply, like we had last year also in one situation. So options are there, and it's inspiring to see -- Laurence, to see how our people stay committed to serve customers in the most difficult situation, find solution, creative solutions, how they all care for each other. It's inspiring to see.

I was talking earlier about finding new solutions. Actually, they are inspiration to see some of the most innovative ideas, where they have some of the processes much faster, simpler than anyone else because they are forced to think like that, and we learn from them.

I want to -- we have -- we're running out of time, but I want to talk about the energy category because, of course, that's been delivering, I think it's 10 years of double-digit growth, and you've had further acceleration. What's really just driving this sustained acceleration? Is it category recruitment, distribution, innovation, premiumization? And where do you expect that sort of growth level to normalize?

Look, it is also -- it is definitely starting with the category. That category is continuously growing year-by-year and expanding. It's a category where it's increasing the average age of consumers, which now is 35, 36 years of age is the average energy consumer, which 15 years ago was definitely different.

Now you see energy products on menu boards, quick service restaurants. Did we see that 15 years ago? No, we didn't, in 10. Simply, there are more drinking moments during the day. Also, the category somehow has a benefit of direct correlation of the fact that consumers say and clearly claim we need more energy to endure through the day. Lives are more hectic, busy, intense. And simply, people need more energy, and they divert to energy drinks as a, like, no-brainer solution for more energy, while also there is more work to be done to also remind people that there are also other sources of energy. Coca-Cola Original Taste is energy in itself, coffee.

So first of all, on the category. And by the way, it's expanding. 26% of energy consumers have entered the category in the last 12 months. That's clear statistic that we get as an insight from Monster team. Now Monster does a phenomenal job with the portfolio development with reformulations. Ultra is a zero sugar variant is performing phenomenal. Now there is a green version, Zero Sugar and various other versions like Valentino Rossi, you see now also -- so reformulation, constant innovation of products. Every year, there is something. And we can clearly attribute to innovation that is driving approximately 1/3 of the growth.

Then tapping into the right passion points of consumers. Energy has been a key proposition in the gaming occasion. Monster has been focused on that. Then you see football, what they do with products in Chelsea now, MotoGP, music, rappers. The overall experiential approach to marketing really does play a role. That's complemented with lots of sampling.

And then you add to that continuous investments behind coolers, providing more equipment so that product is chilled and available. So you put all that together. And yes, the last 10 years, average growth rate volume, 29%. This year will be another 20-plus percent growth year. And I remain confident that the categories continue -- will continue to grow.

So there -- we've jumped around a number of different topics in your business. But what's the area of CCH that investors just don't ask you about and we really should spend a little more time looking at?

First of all, I really like when sometimes people do ask about our culture and our people. And I think that's an important one to sometimes understand more how we do things. And how does this organism really -- organization really live? What values are driving us? What -- how do we nurture all the time this high performance, which I think with a unique way of high performance and care. So I think the element of people and culture, anything else that we can talk -- if people and culture element is not in the right place, I don't think we would be where we are today.

Then second thing is appreciation, how wide our portfolio is. People very often get surprised when we tell them, some of them maybe don't know that we have coffee or that we actually have 2 coffee propositions that we are in many markets also exclusive distributor of premium spirits to reputable companies. I mean, even in the Coca-Cola Company portfolio, sometimes people -- some of them don't appreciate that we own the Fuze, depends level of knowledge that people have around us. But 24/7 portfolio is one thing because I don't think there is another player who has that broad portfolio, which really offers us the opportunity to get to one customer, almost all beverage propositions. And that's the reason why they all get surprised when we share that we get to be 80%, even sometimes 85% of the overall customers' revenue generation comes from our product.

And then also, I would say, Laurence, people maybe don't appreciate how much we are investing behind digital and AI, overall technology. We are very committed in the last 7, 8 years, since we started accelerating investments, what we are producing in-house, how much we have already digitalized our business, how committed we are. And that's attracting now talent that worked in technology companies, where they find it more attractive to work for us because they do see that we mean it serious.

They are in an environment like this digital hub in Cairo, where they really see that we almost act as a technology company, but they are able to see faster results of the things that they work on because they need to translate tomorrow to that sales or whatever initiative is. So there is a faster connectivity between work they do and the results that we achieve. So we are blending this and somehow, let's say, that's probably underrated thing in understanding how much we invest and how much we are transforming company in that sense.

Well, thank you, Zoran, for joining us. I can see we're out of time, but I really appreciate you coming here today and spending your time with us. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you, Larry.

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to the Coca-Cola HBC Conference Call for the 2026 Half Year Results. [Operator Instructions]. I must also advise that this conference is being recorded today, Wednesday, 5th of August 2026.

I now pass the floor to one of your speakers, Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead. Thank you.

Good morning, and thank you all for joining the call. I'm here with our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. Zoran will begin with the strategic highlights from the first half. Anastasis will then take you through our financial performance and outlook in more detail. We will then open up the floor to questions.

Please keep to one question and one follow-up, waiting for us to answer the first question before moving to your follow-up. We have about an hour for the call today, which should give plenty of time for a good discussion.

I will also remind you that this conference call contains various forward-looking statements. These should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements in our results press release this morning and at the end of our slide deck.

With that, I will turn the call over to Zoran.

Thank you, Jemima. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the call. I'm very pleased with the progress we have made in the first half of 2026. We delivered broad-based, volume-led growth, continue to gain market share and invested behind the opportunities that will support our future growth.

Let me highlight 3 key takeaways from the period. First, we continue to deliver high-quality top line growth. Organic revenue increased by 9.6% with organic volume growth of 7.5%. Volume growth was led by Sparkling and Energy, two of our strategic priority categories with marketing campaigns, innovation and execution, all playing a key role. While Q1 benefited from 4 additional selling days, we saw an acceleration in our underlying performance in Q2 to 5.8% growth with all 3 segments contributing, making it the 13th consecutive quarter of volume growth.

Second, we translated this top line performance into strong profit delivery. Gross margins expanded strongly, which allowed us to step up marketing investments and still deliver strong organic comparable EBIT growth of 15.2% with margins up 60 basis points. Comparable earnings per share also grew 15.2%. This strong performance has allowed us to upgrade our guidance for 2026, which Anastasis will share more on later.

And finally, we continue to invest in our 24/7 portfolio and bespoke capabilities, which underpins our long-standing growth trajectory and enables us to win in the market and consistently gain share. Overall, a strong first half despite the challenging backdrop. I would like to sincerely thank all our teams, customers, suppliers and partners for their ongoing efforts and support.

Let me start with a major highlight of the last few months. FIFA World Cup program delivered in partnership with the Coca-Cola Company. From special edition Coca-Cola and Powerade packs, to immersive brand experiences and market-specific activations, we brought the excitement of the tournament to millions of consumers across our footprint.

Key highlights included our value-added promotion with Panini collectible stickers, which resonated strongly with consumers and our AI-enabled penalty kick challenge, an innovative experience developed by our digital innovation hub that allowed consumers to test their skills by recreating famous football penalty. We also launched Powerade FIFA Playstyles, a special edition range with football-inspired players for the World Cup.

Overall, the program has delivered strong results, supporting the positive Trademark Coke and Powerade performance in the period and contributing to share gains for both brands. The value of an activation like the FIFA World Cup extends beyond the immediate volume impact. It is also about strengthening the long-term relevance and equity of our brands by connecting with consumers and being present at moments that matter most to them. I'm very proud of the quality of execution in each of our markets and how our teams took this powerful global platform and translated it into locally relevant experiences, creating value for us and our customers.

Let's move to category performance. Starting with Sparkling, which continues to be the core driver of our growth. Organic volumes grew 6.4% in the first half and 4% in the second quarter. Again, volumes accelerated on an underlying basis Q2 versus Q1. Throughout the period, we continue to bring excitement to the category creating unique consumer experiences through focused execution of our campaigns and our innovation pipeline.

Trademark Coke grew mid-single digits with Coke Zero up mid-teens. And I'm pleased that Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine continued its momentum, achieving triple-digit growth and accelerating further in the second quarter. This reinforces the strength of the proposition and the positive consumer response to the new visual identity we rolled out across 18 markets.

We remain very excited about the opportunities ahead for Coke Zero Zero, including leveraging greater consumption in the evening occasion. Flavor innovation also continued to play an important role. Sprite's ongoing momentum with volumes up high single digits was supported by the launch of the new Lemon Mint Chill flavor in 12 markets. Schweppes volumes grew high single digits, supported by the launch of Schweppes Cherry Pepper, supported by dedicated in-store displays and activations.

Energy continued its exceptional growth trajectory, with volumes up over 25% in the first half. Growth was strong across all 3 segments despite tough comparatives. Monster continued to benefit from a strong innovation pipeline with key launches in the period being Viking Berry, Ultra Fantasy Ruby Red and the new Zero Sugar flavor with Valentino Rossi. We also continue to leverage MotoGP Formula 1 and football partnerships to deliver powerful activations.

And our affordable offers in Africa also continued to perform well, particularly Fury in Egypt, supported by local marketing campaigns and the launch of a new 250ml can. In coffee, our strategic focus remains the out-of-home channel. So I'm pleased that volumes increased 24.5% in this channel in the first half. Both Costa Coffee and Caffè Vergnano grew strongly, supported by growth in existing outlets and the addition of more than 1,300 new out-of-home outlets. In line with our deliberate shift in focus total coffee volumes declined in the first half, but grew in revenue.

We expect the overall category to return to volume growth in the second half of the year. Stills volumes increased 5.2% in the first half with high single-digit growth in water, led by emerging segments. Sports drinks continue to stand out with growth of around 25%. In the first half, we introduced Powerade Active Water in 7 markets, a new range with a diversified proposition aimed at bringing new consumers to the category and as well as the FIFA World Cup, we continue to leverage other local sporting events.

Premium Spirits volumes declined 1.5% in the first half on tough comparatives and impacted by retail challenges with Finlandia in Poland that have now been resolved. Excluding this impact, the overall category volume would have been in growth and Finlandia would have grown low double digits. As I have said before, investing in our bespoke capabilities is critical to sustaining our strong track record of volume, revenue and EBIT growth and continuing to gain share. I want to call out a few highlights from the first half.

Through our leading RGM framework, we continue to drive improvements in mix through targeting each local market. An important part of this framework is to grow volumes and ensure profitability. Over the past few years, we have consistently enhanced our promotion capabilities and tools to create more value with our customers. At the end of last year, we began rolling out Promo360, a single end-to-end promotion management capability across pilot markets. This transformative approach brings together people, processes and technology into one integrated platform, leveraging advanced analytics and AI to help our teams improve promotional effectiveness and drive stronger return on investment. It is now live in 7 markets and will be rolled out further this year.

We also made continued progress on packaging mix with single-serve mix improving by 110 basis points in the first half. This was supported by the launch of new packs, including 500ml PET bottle for Trademark Coke in Egypt, a 500ml Supercan in 3 markets and the introduction of 250ml pack for Fuze Tea across 8 markets.

HoReCa remains a key channel for us and here as well, we are constantly evolving our approach to capture the most value. Our new end-to-end channel approach is data-led and provides greater visibility of opportunities across the outlet universe, enabling us to focus on the highest value opportunities and tailor the right portfolio to the right outlet.

Another highlight was the opening of our new DigitalHub in Cairo, marking another important milestone in our group digital transformation journey. This strategic hub reflects our commitment to developing digital talent and building leading expertise to further enable innovation, operational excellence and support sustainable growth. All of our actions are driving clear results. As we continue to execute strongly and jointly create value with our customers, we further increased our value share year-to-date gaining 80 basis points in NARTD and 40 basis points in Sparkling.

Moving on to CCBA where we are carefully planning for integration so we can hit the ground running after we complete the acquisition. We continue to make good progress towards completion, working through the customary regulatory filings and antitrust approvals and preparations for the secondary listing of our shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

As I mentioned at Q1, we have obtained antitrust clearances in 4 of the 6 jurisdictions. The latest development is that in July, the South African Competition Commission recommended that the Competition Tribunal approved the transaction subject to conditions as expected. We welcome this latest milestone, and we look forward to the competition tribunal decision. Overall, we remain on track to complete the acquisition during the second half of 2026.

Turning to sustainability. I am pleased that our performance continues to be recognized externally. In the first half, Coca-Cola HBC was confirmed for the ninth time as the world's most sustainable beverage company in the 2025 Dow Jones Best-in-Class indices. We also achieved the highest ESG score in the beverage industry in the FTSE Russell assessment, successfully maintaining inclusion in the FTSE4Good Index Series.

We continue to invest in local communities across our markets. This included the completion of EUR 4.1 million water infrastructure project in Bulgaria, helping support the long-term well-being of people and local businesses. In addition, the Coca-Cola HBC Foundation committed EUR 1.5 million to support a fire protection program in Greece and the nature restoration project in Switzerland. Partnerships remain a key driver of our progress, creating both business and sustainability value, following the successful launch last year of sustainable linked business plan together with Carrefour, and The Coca-Cola Company in Romania. This year, we have rolled it out to Poland. The plan focuses on emission reduction, logistics optimization and packaging collection.

Let me now hand over to Anastasis to take you through the financial results.

Thank you, Zoran, and good morning, everyone. In the first half, we delivered a strong financial performance. Organic revenue grew 9.6%, led by organic volume growth of 7.5%. Comparable EBIT increased by 15.2% organically to EUR 760 million, our margins improved by 60 basis points. This resulted in strong earnings per share growth of 15.2%. Finally, free cash flow was robust at EUR 216 million, slightly lower year-on-year, reflecting a planned step up in capital expenditure as we continue to invest in growth.

So let me start with the top line performance. As mentioned earlier, organic revenue increased 9.6% in the first half, while organic volume grew 7.5%, underpinned by a strong underlying performance and the benefit of 4 additional selling days in quarter 1. In quarter 2, volume grew 5.8%, a further improvement on an underlying basis. Organic revenue per case increased 1.9% in the first half. In line with our plans, we delivered an improvement in quarter 2, which saw an increase in revenue per case of 2.1%.

Overall, the lower revenue per case trends compared to previous years reflect more moderate pricing dynamics in a low inflation environment, particularly in Africa. It's also driven by adverse country mix as we continue to see faster growth from our African markets, which have lower revenue per case. However, we continue to implement targeted revenue growth management initiatives, supporting positive category and package mix in the period.

Comparable EBIT increased by 15.2% organically and 17% on a reported basis to EUR 760 million. The main driver of this was gross profit. Our comparable gross profit margin improved by 110 basis points to 37.8%, benefiting primarily from strong recovery in the Emerging segment. We benefited from good top line leverage and easing COGS inflation in the period, helped by a good hedging position and efficiency initiatives despite the recent macroeconomic volatility.

The strong progress in gross margins enabled us to intentionally step up direct marketing investments behind key events and innovations, including FIFA World Cup and Winter Olympics and the launch of the new visual identity for Coke Zero Zero. This resulted in operating expenses as a percent of revenue increasing by 50 basis points, but overall, our comparable EBIT margin still increased by a very strong 60 basis points to 12.2% on both an organic and reported basis.

Let's now look at the drivers of performance by segment. I'm going to discuss these figures on an organic basis and for the first half of the year, unless I say otherwise. In the Established segment, revenues grew by 6.2%, volumes grew by 4.8%, with an underlying acceleration to 3.4% growth in quarter 2 and a good start to the summer season. Sparkling grew mid-single digits, supported by Coke Zero, Coke Zero Zero and Sprite. Energy continued with its strong momentum and Stills grew mid-single digits, driven by good performance in Water and Sports Drinks.

On a country basis, I'm very pleased with the improved performance in Switzerland with volumes up high single digits and the continued good momentum in Ireland. Revenue per case increased 1.3%, reflecting targeted pricing and positive category mix with an improvement in quarter 2. Established segment comparable EBIT increased 6.9% with good operational leverage, offsetting higher marketing expenses leading to 10 basis points of margin expansion.

Turning to the Developing segment. Revenues grew 9%. Volumes grew 5.3% with 3.7% growth in quarter 2. Sparkling grew mid-single digits, driven by Trademark Coke and Sprite. Energy grew strong double digits, and coffee grew strongly in the out-of-home channel.

In terms of country performance, Czech continued its strong momentum, delivering high single-digit volume growth despite a tough comparative. In Poland, volumes grew low single digit in half 1, supported by an underlying improvement in quarter 2. Revenue per unit case increased 3.5%, supported by pricing actions and positive category in package mix. Single-serve mix improved by 210 basis points.

Developing comparable EBIT grew 1.8% with higher marketing expenses, leading to a decline in margins of 70 basis points. In the Emerging segment, revenue grew by 12%, Volumes grew 9% with 7.2% growth in quarter 2. Sparkling volumes increased high single digits, including strong double-digit growth in Coke Zero and high single-digit growth in Fanta and Sprite. Energy grew strong double digits despite tough comparatives and Water grew strongly.

In terms of countries, the performance of both Nigeria and Egypt has been strong in the first half of the year, with volumes up low double digits and low teens, respectively, continuing the momentum of 2025. It was great to host investors and analysts in Cairo last month for the latest bite-size investor event where we proudly shared Egypt's growth and investment journey since our acquisition in 2022.

Revenue per unit case increased 2.8%, a moderation compared with recent years, this reflects both lower pricing to address lower inflation and limited currency headwinds in the period as well as adverse country mix as African markets which have lower revenue per case compared to the CCH average grew faster. Comparable EBIT in Emerging grew strongly, up 23.9%, driven by strong operational leverage and growth in gross profit, offsetting higher marketing expenses.

Moving to the group P&L. We saw comparable earnings per share grow 15.2% to EUR 1.51 supported by the strong EBIT delivery, partly offset by higher net finance costs year-on-year. The finance costs were impacted by higher interest expense related to the new bonds issued for the CCBA acquisition, partially offset by higher finance income on our cash balances. The first half saw a year-on-year step-up in CapEx of over EUR 100 million as we invested in growth-driving initiatives, including new production lines in Nigeria and Egypt, supply chain automation, digital and data solutions and energy-efficient coolers.

CapEx as a percentage of revenue was 6.1%, ahead of the prior year period, but slightly lower than our targeted range of 6.5% to 7.5% in line with our planned phasing. With a strong growth in EBIT, we generated solid free cash flow of EUR 260 million, with a decrease year-on-year reflecting the planned step-up in CapEx, as I just mentioned.

Moving to the outlook for the year. As we progress into the second half, we expect the macroeconomic and geopolitical environment to remain both challenging and unpredictable. Having said that, we have high confidence in our unique 24/7 portfolio, in our bespoke capabilities, in the growth opportunities across our diverse markets and in our people. Reflecting our strong first half performance, consistent with our planned phasing for the year and considering the challenging environment, we now expect to deliver full year 2026 organic revenue growth around the top end of our 6% to 7% range, an organic EBIT growth of 8% to 10%. We have also updated our finance cost guidance and FX translation guidance for the year.

Let me now hand back to Zoran to conclude.

Thanks, Anastasis. To close, let me reiterate the key messages from today's results. First, we delivered a strong first half performance with broad-based, volume-led revenue growth, continued share gains and good momentum across our priority categories. We converted this top line growth into a strong profit delivery with double-digit comparable EBIT and EPS growth. This strong performance allowed us to upgrade our guidance for 2026, as Anastasis just mentioned.

Finally, we continue to invest behind the opportunities that will support our future growth strengthening our 24/7 portfolio, our bespoke capabilities and developing our people. Looking ahead, we remain confident in the strength of our business, the diversity of our markets and the capabilities of our teams to continue creating value for all our shareholders.

Thank you once again to all our colleagues, customers, suppliers and partners for their ongoing efforts and support. Thank you for your attention.

And let us now open the call up to your questions.

[Operator Instructions] And now we're going to take our first question. And the question comes from line of Aron Adamski from Goldman Sachs.

Congrats on the results. So my first question is on the EBIT outlook. The midpoint of your guidance appears to imply low single-digit organic EBIT growth in the second half, probably some margin contraction. So could you please help us bridge the key moving parts behind that, including the impact of fewer selling days? And more broadly, does the outlook assume any moderation in the underlying profit growth for the second half? That's my first question.

So let me first start by saying that I'm very pleased with our strong first half of the year because we delivered high-quality organic revenue growth with both volume and pricing across all our segments and that translate to a strong EBIT delivery. Now as you said, looking ahead for the second half of the year, and in line with our phasing expectations, maybe you recall what we said back in our call for quarter 1, we do expect the half 2 to grow at a lower level than half 1 did. And correctly, this reflects 4 fewer selling days in the last quarter of the year.

Now on top of that, I have to say that we are also factoring in higher energy-related cost pressure for the second half of the year in relation to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. But overall, I have to say that we are confident in narrowing the guidance range to 8% to 10%, which reflects both the strong first half but also allow us to be prudent and capture the current unpredictable environment, especially considering that we still have 5 months ahead of us to go.

Okay. My second question is on the pack mix, which continues to improve strongly. Could you please remind us of the remaining runway to increase the single-serve mix across your business? And where do you see the largest opportunities to drive that growth? Also, it would be great to hear if you can please give us some color on how does the 110 bps improvement in package mix translates into group level price mix? And how accretive is that for the group margins?

Thanks, Aron. I'll start and then Anastasis, add if I miss something. So growing single-serve mix is part of our revenue growth management approach and strategy where we see a number of opportunities across all 3 segments and across all markets, across all categories. And we've been deliberately expanding. And as a priority [indiscernible] serve packages in our key campaigns and in overall programs, marketing programs. So the opportunity is there, as I said, across all segments, especially when we see in Central Europe and more Eastern Europe markets. This is where we see the opportunity for, let's say, wider opportunity for single-serve continuous growth. That's why sometimes you see us intentionally activating certain campaigns only on the single-serves.

Also, there is a deliberate effort in creating shopper habit for selling multipacks of single serves in the at-home channel for the in-home consumption. On top of, of course, our stronghold of HoReCa, where continuously, we are having the drives to drive our single-serves. So still a lot of opportunity to drive those.

Yes. And Aron to your question about the contribution of single-serve mix to the overall price mix, I can say that it varies from segment to segment. But for example, in the development segment, you can see that half of the revenue per case contribution is coming from the single-serve mix. Equally, I can say the same to the emerging segment. So it's part of our overall RGM strategy that mix is playing a big role in driving value, which, of course, translates to profit and margin expansion, subject, of course, to the relevant brand portfolio, right? So it's overall accretive, I can say.

The next question comes from line of Nadine Sarwat from Bernstein.

Two for me, please. First, coming back to the guidance, which you've narrowed to the top for both top line and bottom line guidance. Can you provide us some color as to what specifically surprised you in Q2 and gave you the confidence to change your full year guidance?

And then my second question is on net sales revenue per unit case growth. I believe that came in lighter than perhaps some were expecting, and I appreciate the color you provided on country mix. But if I look at the 2% organic growth you printed in Q2 for the group, is that a run rate we should expect for the second half? Or are there any reasons why we would see an improvement in that figure?

Nadine, thank you. Look, I wouldn't say that we had any surprise in Q2. We were heading into Q2 with a very strong programs. Most of all, FIFA World Cup, for which, together with Coca-Cola Company, we have prepared extensively really activating consumers through with special edition packs with promotions, with digital activation with consumer experiences. So we have really done excellent preparation, I would say, for any World Cup, best so far. And also, it's already our preseason period.

Coupled with that is also innovation that we have been doing in the first half and second quarter, which I mentioned in my remarks. But they clearly had a good impact on both in Sparkling and Powerade and also Energy. So all in all, Q2 was in line with our expectations and with all the programs that we have. And that gave us the confidence to do this upgrade in the guidance that we just communicated. You -- in relation to the revenue per case, you will remember that we said in Q1, and it's still -- and it's valid also for Q2, that after a number of years where we really had a predominant generation of revenues through price mix. This year, we are intentionally more prioritizing and focusing on volume.

However, not neglecting revenue per case or price mix which had improvement in Q2. And we do anticipate that in the second half, we will see some further slight improvement in the revenue per case. I just want to conclude, Nadine, to say that this is a year where in our revenue growth management, all 3 drivers of volume, price and mix, simply need to deliver and they will. But in this algorithm for this year, volume is going to be the one that is going to take more weight in our revenue generation.

The question comes from line of Matthew Ford from BNP Paribas.

Two for me as well, please. The first one, just on the performance in Egypt and Nigeria. Clearly, the emerging segment was particularly strong from an EBIT perspective. Clearly, the growth in Egypt and Nigeria continues to do well.

But my question specifically is on the kind of profitability you're seeing there and the margin expansion. If you could give any kind of color on how that margin expansion developed in the first half in those markets and what the expectation is in H2 and beyond? And I -- yes, I'll follow up with my second question.

Matthew, you're correct. The Emerging segment performance was very strong, both on organic revenue, 12%, and also very strong EBIT growth of almost 24% with margin expansion of 140 basis points. Now as I said on the call, the key driver for that starts with a strong improvement in gross profit which was, of course, helped by the very good top line performance, driving leverage.

Cost inflation compared to prior year's first half was following a lower trend that we have seen. We have benefited from our hedging and productivity initiatives in those markets. And there was also a positive FX transactional tailwind, so that allowed us to drive strong profitability while on the same time, we stepped up marketing investments in those markets. So this good performance on the margin is on the back of the incremental marketing spend.

Now to your question on the second half of the year, how this will evolve, we do expect EBIT to be, of course, positive. But as I said earlier on the overall phasing, these markets are also impacted by the 4 less selling days in quarter 4. So obviously, half 1 will have a much more -- a bigger weight as we've said. And we do expect, given the current environment, certain pressure when it comes to fuel-related cost pressures compared to what we saw in the first half of the year. But we do expect that those markets will continue to grow profitably, and we are very pleased with the performance.

That's great. And then my follow-up is just on Russia, actually. I think on the volume performance, I think we were up mid-single digit for the half. And obviously, Q1, we saw sort of low single-digit growth, but that was with the benefit of the selling day. So it feels like on an underlying basis, there was an improvement sequentially in Q2.

Any color on what was driving that and sort of your expectation, I suppose, for the growth as we go into the second half where I think the comps were fairly soft. And then just staying on Russia, just one quick one. I know I see the Russia cash has just got above EUR 1 billion, I think, in H1. So clearly, that's generated quite a lot of interest income. Given the sort of EUR 8 million interest of net finance costs in H1, just interested to get your feel of exactly what's driving that sort of implied acceleration in the net finance costs in the second half to get to your revised full year guidance?

Thanks, Matt. Look, situation -- performance in Russia, I think it continues in line as in the previous years, nothing different than we see that is locally managed and locally finance business is doing as we just announced in the press release. So really no big changes in the things happening there.

Yes. Okay. A couple of points that you raised there. First of all, on the cash in Russia, yes, it's just over EUR 1 billion now. But we have to understand that the kind of phasing will not follow the same rate of growth throughout the whole year. We had the same discussion last year or the first half, it's more up from the second half. Also, please keep in mind that this cash in Russia is also having a positive tailwind from the currency translation, right? So it's not just only performance.

Now to the finance cost question, to be a bit more detailed now. So you've seen that for the first half of the year, the finance cost of EUR 8 million is an increase, but this came better than expected. First of all, on one thing, we have the higher interest expenses that relates to the bond that we issued earlier in the year in March for the CCBA funding.

So that obviously is one of the drivers of the incremental finance costs, but at the same time, we are benefiting from 2 elements. One is also a good stronger cash flow generation in markets like Nigeria compared to 2025, which means less need for local financing than it is originally expected. And then there is a benefit from higher finance income, which, of course, includes also the cash in Russia.

So the cash in Russia, keep in mind, the benefit there is not all held in ruble. There is an amount which is, let's say, 5% is local currency, the rest is ForEx. And the interest benefit is not as high as you would expect is coming lower than the market trend. And for that, given the good performance of the first half, we are also upgrading the guidance to EUR 40 million to EUR 50 million for the full year.

On the second half, there is an implied increase to that cost. But that, of course, has to do with the fact that you will have 6 full months of the bond issuance versus only a quarter in half 1. And of course, it directly correlates to the timing of the CCBA completion. And we also expect lower finance income on the back of lower interest rates in countries like Russia.

And the question comes from of Charlie Higgs from Rothschild & Co.

My first question is on sports drinks, which had a very good performance. Volumes up 25%. I was wondering on what your view is on the advanced hydration opportunity across your markets and how you plan to make the strong growth stick from Powerade, because I imagine quite a lot of the growth came from temporary in-store displays around FIFA and the Winter Olympics.

So Powerade, while we've seen really excellent performance in Q2 and overall first half, this actually is a continuation of strong performance over the last couple of years. This brand proves excellent potentiality and relevance with consumers and with customers. So I'm very, very pleased how we've been activating this with various sporting events.

Now it was FIFA World Cup, but overall, we are connecting Powerade with a number of sporting events, whether that's sponsorships with various clubs events or sports facilities. And going forward, exactly as you said, we do see the opportunity together with Coca-Cola Company in the advanced hydration. We think it's an exciting and definitely growing category. And it is an opportunity that we will be going after and doing more and more. So let's just stay tuned in, and we'll see what happens.

And then my follow-up was on energy drinks, which again, continues to perform very well from volumes. Can you maybe just give a bit more color on the various buckets of Monster versus Predator, Fury versus some of the strategic brands like Burn. And then how much innovation is coming from kind of the core range versus some of these new launches like Viking Berry? And then maybe just kind of bolting on for Anastasis, roughly how much of the energy drinks do you do in-house now versus co-packers? And is there maybe scope going forward with the strong volume growth to bring more in-house to boost margins?

Yes, Charlie, Energy continues to really perform very well. This is the first year where contribution of Energy just exceeds 10% in our total volumes. So sorry, well, I fast forward it a bit, I wish it was 10% of the volume -- 10% of revenue, where the proven formula continues to deliver, which is that reformulation introduction of Zero flavors, new innovative flavors like what I said now with Viking Berry. Innovation overall is a very important driver in this category of driving incremental volume and revenue.

On top of that, continues very good activation and leverage of the passion points that together with Monster, we are doing across the market, whether that's MotoGP, Formula, Football and also in a number of markets as well music. Good reminder that 1/4 of the energy drinkers have entered the category in the last 12 months. This just also shows that the whole category is growing, and it's present across more and more occasions, and it's quite balanced between the gender. So I'm just giving this flavor to give you more fact of why, a, the category is growing, but also why we are growing faster than the category growth. We are now already in 11 more markets. We are stronger in the value in our shares than Red Bull. And we are positive going forward also with the prospect of the -- this category growth. And for the...

Charlie, our current in-house capacity -- production capacity covers about -- between 50% and 60% of the total leverage.

And the next question comes from the line of Mitch Collett from Deutsche Bank.

I appreciate it's probably quite a small part of the portfolio, but I was really interested in the acceleration in Coke Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine. I think you say you did strong triple-digit growth, which in itself is an acceleration on a strong Q1, where it was, I think, strong double digits. And I guess I'm interested in how big a contributor you think Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine can be. It doesn't look like it has a negative impact on Coke Zero, which is still doing well. And can you comment on the sort of rollout strategy of that under the new branding?

Mitch, yes. Look, the Zero Sugar is really now multiyear continuously faster-growing part of the Coca-Cola trademark, and that's absolutely great. And the first half was no exception with really great mid-teens growth. But this Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine, which we are growing with triple-digit growth has been absolute hit with consumers, tapping really into the occasion.

And as [ Enrique ] very well explained also in his call in Q1, this is really understanding the insight of consumers and coming up with this innovation and then creating this intimacy with consumers in every single market and follow with the integrated execution that we are doing. With a number of packs, but also focusing this in this occasion, especially in the -- from late afternoon and evening occasion where the insight is that big number of our consumers are trying to avoid the caffeine.

So it is continuously growing in the contribution on the whole Coca-Cola trademark as also in other flavors -- sorry, Fanta, Sprite, Schweppes where we are also reformulating and leveraging this Zero Sugar trend. So we will -- we do expect that this trend is also going to continue and you will see us with a strong focus behind it.

And then my unrelated follow-up is on COGS. Given you called out energy pressure on COGS in the second half, I appreciate it's early, but can you just give us a bit of color on how you might think about COGS in 2027? And I guess linked to that, can you just tell us how hedged you are for '27 at this stage?

Yes. So Mitch, for 2027, I think it's a bit too early to comment right now as a lot depends on the evolution of the current situation that we are all experiencing. All I can tell you is about the hedging status that we have for the full year of '26, we are above 85% covered on key commodity hedging positions. And it's basically, as I said before, the energy-related costs that could have on the noncoverable hedgeable utilities countries, for example, that would have an implication on our cost per case for the second half of the year.

And I can say also that in relation to 2027 hedging coverage, we are -- we would expect to be at this time of the year. We will share more details as we come towards the year-end. But just as an indication, we are -- our hedging policy goes up to 36 months. So I hope this helps for now.

And the question comes from the line of Simon Hales from Citi.

So a couple for me. I mean, can I just come back on the COGS discussion. I may have missed it, apologies. But in terms of 2026 guidance on COGS, I think back at the Q1 stage, you were saying low single-digit COGS per case for the full year. Given the higher energy costs in the Middle East that you're seeing now, what is the guidance for this year, and particularly for H2 on that? So apologies if I missed that.

And then secondly, I wonder if you could just talk a little bit more about the performance in volumes that you saw through Q2 sort of by region and particularly perhaps what the exit rate was? I'm thinking probably crucially in places like the established and developing markets where perhaps the weather was particularly good at the end of the period and into early Q3. And I don't know, Zoran, whether you would venture a guesstimate as to how much of an uplift perhaps the World Cup activation has given you overall from a volume perspective in the first half?

All right. Let me give a bit more clarity on the COGS guidance. Thank you, Simon. So as I said, the overall Middle East situation, I believe that it will be manageable given the strong hedging position we have of 85% on key commodities. But as there is a certain level of energy-related costs that cannot be hedged, as you understand, but that's where we see most of the pressure. And that's where we expect that for the second half of the year, our COGS per case would be expected to be from low towards mid-single digits for the second half, which also would indicate that the full year would be on the same year, low to mid-single digits.

And Simon, to add from my end, it's hard to pinpoint the exact number to contribute to the volume growth. But clearly, FIFA World Cup activation had a very positive boost and impact on our performance on Coca-Cola trademark and Powerade with everything that we've been doing and I explained a bit earlier. So clearly, positive impact and not only during the tournament duration, but we also see that this type of thing also has a positive impact going forward with customer relationships with a strengthened brand equity. And that's why we love these kind of properties as they have positive impact.

And the next question comes from the line of Sanjeet Aujla from UBS.

I'd like to dig into the established markets. We've had a couple of years of soft volume performance. Clearly, '26 is inflected. Can you just help us understand how much of that volume improvement we're seeing is perhaps a function of the weather or just underlying consumer fundamentals a little bit better? And how are you thinking about the second half of the year? Are there any key markets maybe incrementally positive about or incrementally concerned about as we [indiscernible].

Well, very pleased with the performance in the established segment across all markets. Let me just highlight that, particularly -- we've seen Ireland performing really well now continuously. Switzerland, very nice performance in the first half, good bounce back from -- in Austria, you heard me saying last year how Austria was impacted by the [indiscernible] start and now nicely coming back. Greece had a pretty solid mid-single-digit performance and also Italy with -- also with a good performance.

So overall, quite well-rounded performance being established by all the markets. And I'm also very pleased to see how our brands have performed in -- myCoke had a beautiful mid-single-digit performance. Energy continues to perform well across all segments, but it's also important to highlight it in the Established segment. And just give us the opportunity to connect the question that Charlie had just a small correction that we are already around 85% production in-house of Monster as a result of the fact that we've been together investing behind in-house capacity as we see that also as very important.

So overall, I'm positive that our established segment will continue with a good performance and will be positive on a full year level. I think you asked on the weather. I really can't pinpoint one number that can be given for the weather because we look at it over a multi-month horizon. When you see the first half, beginning of Q1 had really unusually colder weather in a number of markets. Even Q2, it started with a mixed weather with a quite rainy periods in a number of markets. But definitely, we were happy with the warm weather in June. So overall, it did have a positive impact and I regard it as the tailwind, but it's not easy to say what exactly that was for the Q2.

Yes. And my follow-up is just on the revenue per case for Established. We did see an improvement in Q2 versus Q1. I think record Q1 was held back by the skew towards the larger pack formats. But is Q2 a more normalized kind of run rate for revenue per case in Established? And can you just help us decompose that between core pricing and the various mix tailwinds you're getting out of the region?

Sanjeet, correct. Q2 accelerated to 1.9% revenue per case. Now there were a couple of areas. First of all, there was positive category mix. You heard Zoran talk about Energy was up strong double digit. But also, there were certain targeted pricing actions that we took in there. We had also improvement on the single-serve pack mix. 80 basis points, in particular, was the step-up in single-serve mix in quarter 2.

And maybe you recall we were saying back in the call for quarter 1 that was a phasing element of the Easter which resulted to more multi-serve packs coming into the first quarter. And now we see the more normalized trend. So on average, the overall half was with single-serve mix of 50 basis points. So I can say that the quarter 2 represent more accurate, let's say, performance of revenue per case.

And the question comes from the line of Fintan Ryan from Goodbody.

Two questions from me, please. Firstly, I guess, probably more technical question for Anastasis. I've noticed in the disclosures, you've exceptionalized EUR 15 million cost in H1 associated, you said with the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the transport costs. Could you provide a bit more context in terms of like what those costs are? And are they just a one-off cost in H1? Or should we be factoring in some recurring exceptional costs going forward?

Yes. Ryan, thank you. So let me provide bit of clarity here. First of all, it's not the first time that we have something under the Russian-Ukraine war as a noncomparable item in line with the APM. This basically has to do with the disruption that was caused in the operations in Ukraine and the plant as a result of the conflict, which resulted to having to source products from our other facilities, mainly coming from Poland and Romania.

So that was a one-off disruption that resulted to incremental transportation, you can even call it haulage in this case and some repairs required in the facilities. This all has been normalized. We're fully operational back in place. So it's not a comparable, not repeated item that you should consider as operational.

And my second question, I guess, bigger picture, probably for Zoran. Like you've called out functional Waters and Zero Caffeine Zero Sugar is an area of focus. But one thing that we're seeing consumers across many markets is that protein trend. Just wondering your thoughts on your portfolio, yourselves and the Coca-Cola Company with the Fairlife brand in the U.S., but is there anything that you're currently thinking or planning on bringing into your portfolio or markets to play into the protein trend over the foreseeable future?

Fintan, yes, look, overall, the umbrella of innovation is something that Coca-Cola Company team is really working very hard on that. And I think there are a number of very exciting things in the pipeline. We feel excited about it. And I can only say that protein is on the horizon of looking into that and considering. So that's part of the things that we are discussing together with the Coca-Cola Company. So yes, let's see where that takes us, but it is an important part of the innovation considerations.

[Operator Instructions] And it comes the line of Edward Mundy from Jefferies.

So my first question is really around as you go into a slightly more challenging COGS environment in 2027. To what extent does your richer portfolio today and your stronger RGM toolkit especially given AI, to what extent does that give you more confidence in your ability to navigate a tougher COGS environment? That's my first question.

Look, I firmly believe that the quality and the breadth of the portfolio that we've been developing under our 24/7 vision and strategy umbrella is really putting us in a good place to provide types of beverages and in the occasions that consumers need. But equally important, with well-selected and -- capabilities behind which we are doing continuous investments and constant development. With everything that we've been going through over the last number of years, we've seen that, that combination and blend of a great portfolio and strong capabilities really helps us to go through all types of weather, no matter what happens. And I'm very confident that no matter what happens in '27 that we have necessary skills and knowledge to really go through whatever '27 brings.

I think you mentioned AI, I want to emphasize that AI is something that we, as Coca-Cola HBC, has been investing behind and working now for several years, pushing ourselves to really see where it really matters and where is the most meaningful place in our business because today, it's easy to get distracted just to do something in AI, but we try to really push ourselves to be focused and disciplined.

That's why also in-house, we have our own AI and digital innovation council, which Naya leads and Mourad, our Digital and Technology Officer colleagues, exactly so that business and digital and technology functions are working together behind prioritized areas where we really want to focus our efforts, all with the intention that we see how we can connect closer and faster with customers, for digital engagement using AI, for our own teams across all the functions to increase productivity and efficiency but also how to complement all our employees in the way how they work and improve decision quality with blending AI and also data insights and analytics. So that overall, this helps how we run the business to be faster, smarter and more responsible.

And my second question is that you've delivered best part of 6% volume growth in the second quarter, quite a lot ahead of your medium-term run rate. And clearly, we had FIFA in there. There's been like a lot of innovation. There's been some good weather. You're clearly already thinking about how you're going to cycle that as you go into 2027, but what gives you excitement as you look to 2027 and how you cycle this very, very strong period of growth. And as part of that same question, how do you ensure that the business remains focused on the core as you integrate CCBA at the same time?

Look, every year, we always -- there is always something to think, okay, how do we do more and better every year, but that starts from doing better every single day. Now we already have very good discussions with our partners, both with Coca-Cola Company in Europe and in Africa about the programs for next year. And I'm very pleased that we are not in shortage of the ideas and programs that we will leverage next year across key pillars, which are food occasions, which are super important for our consumers, music, sports in a number of places. So we see lots of things with which I'm sure we are going to create another set of strong plans. And the second part of the question was -- just remind me.

How do you ensure that the core remains strong whilst you're also integrating a big business like CCBA?

Yes. Clearly. So look, while the regulatory process is continuing, we are working intensively on the integration planning where our functional teams are working with the teams from CCBA on the things that we can do before the closing happens. Secondly, also, CCBA is a company that is really running well. So we see that the opportunity will be that we are going to be a tailwind to really help those teams that are already working on the ground.

And I can say, Ed, we just finished one tour that a couple of us went in South Africa, Tanzania and Ethiopia, where we wanted to learn more firsthand from the local teams together with CCBA team, and we came back really encouraged with the level of opportunities and what local teams were presenting to us, just reiterating that our key role will be how to put more fuel in the engine, how to provide more tailwind investments and learnings and capability development. And I believe that with the strength of the talent that we have in the company, that we are well positioned, and we do have capacity and capability to do that from the moment CCBA comes into portfolio.

And the question comes from line of Aron Adamski from Goldman Sachs.

I just wanted to follow up on activation investments. Looking ahead to 2027, should we expect a higher level of marketing investment to continue or is there scope for the ratio to moderate as you lap a particularly busy 2026 pipeline? So in other words, I was wondering was the ramp-up we saw in H1 and one-off related to a very busy calendar? Or is this a new baseline?

Look in our marketing investments, which have stepped up in line with our strategy and with the program that we had with partners, there were some elements which were more one-off like Winter Olympics and FIFA World Cup. However, we have seen the step-up of the marketing investments in this year which will be the case for the full year.

And we will see more increased level of marketing investments going forward, but they will be tailored and they will be relevant to the programs that we are going to do for the next year, and we will be able to talk more about that soon as we get into -- very soon into '27.

Dear speakers, there are no further questions for today. I would now like to hand the conference over to the management team for any closing remarks.

Well, thank you, operator. I just want to thank everyone for taking the part in the call and the interest and a good conversation. Thank you very much and wishing you all a very good day.

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now all disconnect. Have a nice day.

All right. Good morning, everyone. A very warm welcome to everyone in the room and dialed into the webcast to today's Coca-Cola HBC Bitesize event. This is now the third in our series of Bitesize investor events and our first in a hybrid format. So we're delighted to have both online attendees and participants with us live in Cairo. We really appreciate you making the time for what we believe is going to be a great day.

The aim of these events is to provide deep dives into areas of the business that are important drivers of our strategy and investment case and especially the ones you've told us you want to hear more about. We've covered data insights and analytics, Nigeria. And today, we shift our attention to another key market, Egypt.

Before I hand over to our speakers, let me walk through the agenda this morning. Our first section is welcome to Egypt. Our Chief Operating Officer, Naya Kalogeraki, will introduce you to our Egyptian business and our journey since the acquisition in 2022 to today. In our second section, unlocking growth, Naya will hand over to Adnan Topic or Ado, our General Manager in Egypt, who will share more details on our strategies for growth, including how we're leveraging our unique 24/7 portfolio and how we are winning in the market with our bespoke capabilities.

Ado will also be joined by Sherif Fouad, our People and Culture Director here in Egypt, who will highlight the critical role our people and community partnerships play in our success. We will then take a short break before our last section, driving future value, where Ado will be joined by Konstantinos Vairlis, Egypt's CFO, to take you through the building blocks of our sustainable and profitable growth algorithm in Egypt before handing back to Naya to close.

To finish off the morning, I will host a Q&A session with Naya, Ado and Konstantinos, who will also be joined by our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. We will take questions from the room, but there will also be an opportunity for participants online to write the question on the Spark platform. And for those of us here in Cairo, we will be visiting the market this afternoon to see our execution in action, but I'll come back on the details of that later.

With that, let's play a short video to introduce you to Egypt, and then I'll hand straight over to Naya.

[Presentation]

What a great place to be all together. Good morning, everyone. Thank you, Jemima, and a very warm welcome to Cairo. It's great to be back with you for another one of our Bitesize events. As Jemima said, we have a full agenda plan and lot to share today. Today is a fantastic opportunity for us to showcase the significant progress we've made in Egypt since acquiring the business in 2022.

As you will hear from the team, our journey in Egypt has been one of transformation, integrating the business, navigating through challenges and importantly, unlocking growth. Our progress has been underpinned by a core belief in the importance of culture, developing our people and with a commitment to investing for long-term success. And we're just getting started. We remain incredibly excited about the opportunities ahead with Egypt playing a central role in CCH growth ambitions.

Before we dive in, I wanted to set out upfront the key messages we'd like you to take away today. Firstly, Egypt is a large dynamic market with clear growth potential, underpinned by attractive demographics and strong category momentum.

Second, since acquisition, we have strengthened the business and built resilience despite significant volatility within the market, positioning us strongly for the next stage of growth.

Third, our leading portfolio, bespoke capabilities and strong partnerships with the Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy are driving stronger execution and performance, which we will bring to life today through the presentations, videos and most importantly, the market visit.

And fourth, disciplined investments are accelerating growth in Egypt and creating valuable transferable learnings for Africa that we are confident will help underpin our future growth across the continent.

So let me introduce you to Egypt. As you probably know, CCH acquired the Egyptian Coca-Cola bottling franchise at the start of 2022. In just over 4 years, Egypt has become a truly important part of CCH story. It now represents 11% of our group volumes, making it our third largest market, which really underlines the scale of opportunity here.

This is a market with strong momentum. Working in close partnership with the Coca-Cola Company and Monster has led to encouraging early results across categories. Last year, Egypt was the fastest-growing country for trademark Coke in Africa. It was the largest market for Schweppes globally and the fastest-growing market for energy across CCH markets.

We've also made solid progress on market share, narrowing the gap with the market leader, despite a challenging backdrop, which I'll get on to shortly. And this is underpinned by the investment we've made to unlock Egypt's potential. We now have a team of over 4,300 people, including more than 1,600 colleagues on the ground in sales. And from an operational standpoint, we've strengthened our footprint with 5 plants and 24 production lines, giving us the scale and capacity we need to support future growth.

So if that's the picture today, let me just give you a sense of how we've got here. After acquiring the business in January 2022, we implemented our integration framework in a very disciplined way with clearly defined priorities and actions over the first 3 years. This has positioned us with a stronger, more scalable platform for future growth. And as we look ahead to CCBA, we will leverage the relevant learnings from this experience while adapting the approach to each market's local realities.

Let me unpack our approach in Egypt in more detail. The first priority was stabilizing the business and integrating core functions, ensuring full business continuity. This included elements like back-office integration, aligning finance and governance standards and implementing our performance review processes to effectively measure improvements in performance as well as execution.

We then started to invest decisively behind growth, expanding our cooler footprint, increasing production capacity and strengthening our sales force. At the same time, we accelerated digital transformation, including the rollout of SAP S/4HANA, SAP's leading enterprise resource planning software. We integrate critical functions into one centralized system with the rest of CCH. Post this in a while will share more.

Next, we focused on upgrading capabilities and expanding the portfolio, rolling out our revenue growth management framework, transforming the route to market, leveraging data and AI, improving customer engagement and stepping up local talent development.

On the portfolio side, we expanded into new and high-growth categories, including energy and sport drinks and worked jointly with the Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy to recruit consumers, accelerating local marketing investment. Alongside this, we've leveraged the group's scale and expertise across digital, procurement and treasury while delivering targeted back-office efficiencies.

At the same time, Egypt and its strategic location play an important role in supporting the group's broader strategy. Since acquiring the business, we've leveraged local talent here in Cairo to establish a CCH shared services center and digital hub, supporting group-wide capability development.

Going through this process recently with Egypt gives us confidence for CCBA's integration ahead of us. We've learned a lot, but now that local agility is critical during transformation and lasting success depends on how we balance our global scale with local capability building.

As you know well, it hasn't been an easy backdrop for us or anyone since acquiring Egypt. We've seen significant inflation, currency devaluation as well as geopolitical challenges. But this environment did not slow us down, if anything. It pushed us to move faster. We used it as an opportunity to accelerate investments and build critical capabilities, leveraging our strong track record of operating through volatility.

In response to rising inflation, we deployed disciplined RGM scenario planning to manage pricing in a dynamic environment and ensured we protected affordability with relevant offerings while continuing to drive premiumization across categories. To mitigate currency devaluation, we leveraged central CCH capabilities in procurement and treasury, moved to local suppliers where possible and drove cost efficiencies.

Finally, we navigated geopolitical challenges such as boycotts by strengthening our local relevance, activating meaningful passion points that truly resonate in the market while investing in local talent and communities, ensuring we remain closely connected to consumers.

Despite these challenges, I'm really proud of how the team has executed, driving improving results. In the last 3 years, Egypt has delivered a strong financial performance. Volumes have grown significantly despite meaningful increases in price/mix to navigate inflation and currency pressures. I'm encouraged that this organic revenue momentum continued strongly in Q1 of this year as well with growth driven by volumes.

Before I hand over to the local team, I want to touch on our market share progress. As you may remember, when we acquired Egypt, Coca-Cola was the #2 player in sparkling, which presented a significant opportunity for the future. I'm very pleased with the progress we've made in closing the gap to the market leader, reducing it from 13 percentage points in 2022 to just 5 points by the end of 2025.

This reflects consistent share gains and clear outperformance versus the largest competitor even in a market disrupted by ballots and broader volatility. It is a result of the investments we made and the actions we undertook, which I touched on earlier and the strength we gained from leveraging the scale and expertise of the broader group. Overall, this is a strong and resilient performance that really highlights the quality of our execution with further upside still ahead.

On that note, let me hand over to Ado and Sherif to share more details on how we are leveraging our 24/7 portfolio, bespoke capabilities and people to unlock growth and win in the market in Egypt.

Thank you, Naya, and a very warm welcome from my side as well. It's a pleasure to have you in Cairo and to have the opportunity to showcase what is truly an amazing market. energy, the scale and potential that makes Egypt so exciting.

Let me start with a quick introduction. I have been with Coca-Cola Hellenic nearly the 25 years with experience across of many markets and different commercial roles. Before joining Egypt as a General Manager last year in June, I have been leading Ukraine, Armenia, Moldova business unit for the 2 years.

Prior to that, I have been serving as a Sales Director in the same business unit for 5 years. Previously, I have worked on a different commercial position across the Bosnia, Croatia and Slovenia. As you can imagine, that give me a broader perspective on operating and winning in diverse and very often challenging environment.

So let me start with the fundamentals of the market. Egypt has very attractive demographics. It is one of the Africa largest country with a population of nearly 120 million people, which is forecasted to continue growing. Importantly, it's young population with about 60% of the population under 30 years. This results in a powerful engine for long-term and sustained consumer recruitment.

Egypt also benefits from a large economy with the second highest GDP in Africa and is expected to continue growing at about 4% per year. It is also the top destination in Africa for foreign direct investment, and it's one of the world's largest consumer markets with an urban population of 40% and growing.

Critically, there is a significant room for further growth in per capita consumption. Egypt's sparkling per cap consumption of 110 is the second lowest across current Coca-Cola Hellenic footprint. In 2025, we saw good progress with a growth of 8%, but we see significant room for future growth.

But the opportunity is not only about scale. It's also about the unique characteristic of the market itself. Egypt is truly distingued market, shaped by rich cultural heritage and diverse influences. It sits in the center of Arab world with a unique blend of the Middle Easterian, African and Western influences that shape consumer behavior.

Traditions and religious practices strongly influence daily life and the culture calendar, creating specific and important consumption moments throughout the year. At the same time, Egyptian consumers are highly social. Hospitality and social gathering are center of everyday life with the food at the center of celebrations, while strong passions such as football, film and music create multiple occasions for engagement and consumption.

And finally, tourism is a key structural driver. Egypt is one of Africa's top destination with 19 million tourists a year and growing strongly supported by government investment in infrastructure and continue focusing on expanding the sector. This provides an additional demand tailwind, particularly a key channel and high-traffic location.

So how we are unlocking this growth opportunity I just told you? The key focus for here has been ensuring we have a right 24/7 portfolio to win across more consumption occasions. Before acquisition, the business was relatively limited in scope. It had a dual category focused on sparkling and water, which restricted choice for consumers.

What we have done since then is reshape the portfolio, moving from the narrow offering to multi-category, broader 24/7 portfolio that allow us to recruit more consumers, increase frequency and drive incremental value. Today, we are present across sparkling, energy and hydration with a balanced approach that combines both affordability and premiumization.

Sparkling remains the core growth driver. With a wider flavor range and price pack architecture across 3 segments: core, value and premium, we are capturing more occasions and offering consumer greater choice across price points.

Energy is a clear strategic growth pillar and a great example of how we are unlocking new value pools. We built category essentially from scratch, introducing a dual brand strategy with the Monster and Fury. The results have been very strong with a triple-digit growth and the category now contributing over 10% of the revenue. It is still in early stage, and we expect energy to be a key growth engine going forward as we continue to build distribution and relevance with our consumers.

In hydration, our focus has been on moving beyond basic hydration into higher value segments. Alongside on core water offering, we have introduced Powerade, allowing us to participate in the performance of the sports hydration, expanding our role from the simple refreshment to functional hydration. We are excited for the opportunity in this space as we leverage our market leadership position to drive further awareness and consumption.

Now let me bring to life how we are activating our portfolio in the market. Starting with the Trademark Coke, where we identified the opportunity to drive strong per capita consumption by recruiting more consumers and step changing consumer engagement by showing in the moments of the passion points that truly matter locally. We do this in close partnership with the Coca-Cola Company, combining global brand strength with the local execution excellence.

Let me give you a few examples of some of our recent initiatives. In the football, we partnered with the largest club in the country, Al Ahly, giving us significant reach and cultural relevance at scale.

Beyond core sponsorship activity to drive transaction, we are further elevating the consumer experience. For example, we have launched limited edition collectible can and retro jerseys that creating excitement in store and delivering a more impactful shopper experience.

In the music, we are working with the top local artists such as Mohamed Ramadan, who has over 120 million combined globally followers, helping to amplify both brand visibility and cultural connection. Most recently, we leveraged this partnership during the Coca-Cola FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour with Ramadan performing and Trophy Reveal. The event delivered highest engagement across Coca-Cola platforms within 48 hours, generating over 30 million views.

We are also leaning into local traditions and occasions, particularly Ramadan, where we activated around core consumption moments and community engagement to reinforce brand relevance and most important points in the country's calendar.

And as Zoran mentioned at Coca-Cola Hellenic Q1 results, I'm very proud that this year, we achieved a Guinness World Record serving the most community meals with the Coca-Cola in 1 hour during Ramadan Meal Festival event.

And finally, we are focusing on the Gen Z recruitment, prioritizing key consumption occasions such as breaks and meals as well as relevant channels, including end-to-end activation for our 4 university campus reaching over 1 million students.

Importantly, we are seeing results. In 2025, Egypt was the #1 fastest-growing country for Trademark Coke in Africa and in the top 10 globally. And as Naya showed you, we are delivering strong growth share with the fastest growth in cola segment in 2025.

Let's play a short video to bring it to life.

[Presentation]

Moving on to Schweppes. Egypt is the largest market globally for Schweppes today and has a long history within the country. It's a powerful brand that play a unique role in the market, catering very well to the stay drinking occasion. Schweppes is a great example how we are building category leadership while driving premiumization at scale through a series targeted commercial actions.

First, we further build on its unique brand edge through local relevant communication, strengthening emotional connection with the consumers by prioritizing experience and social occasions.

To give a few examples, last year, we launched the flavor of the quarter campaign, spotlighting one of the flavor per quarter to drive momentum and boost smaller flavor with great results. And this year, we have campaign with the leading Egyptian personalities tied to our experience win platforms.

Second, we expand the flavor range with innovations such as apple and strawberry malt to elevate the stray drinking experience and broaden consumer appeal. Third, we optimized our price pack architecture, including the launch of new smaller entry packs with significantly improving execution excellence.

Finally, we developed a compelling customer proposition supported by dedicated Schweppes coolers and unique displays, driving visibility and in-store impact. This has delivered strong results. In addition to remaining the largest market for Schweppes, Egypt has been the fastest-growing brand since 2022, achieving record sales in 2025.

Let's play a short video.

[Presentation]

Staying with the sparkling, let me turn now into flavors for Fanta and Sprite. Here, we are focusing on winning more food-led moments, particularly with the Gen Z by strengthening relevance, delivering superior taste and improving affordability and visibility in store.

As you can see on the slide, with the Fanta, we are leaning into snacking occasions, positioning the brand as the perfect companion to light meals and everyday treats. And with Sprite, we are focused on spicy meals occasions where the brand has a strong and credible note. Together with Coca-Cola Company, we are activating this through targeted communications and bold activations, clearly linking Fanta and Sprite to these consumption moments.

We've also introduced a new Fanta Lemon flavor while expanding our pack while offering new format for both brands, such as the 125 PET bottle to help us better address different price points and varying consumer needs.

At the same time, we are strengthening execution in store with a more impactful dedicated customer displays that improve visibility for both brands. This approach is delivering results. We are seeing solid momentum across the portfolio with the Fanta growing volume by 6% and spread by 9% in 2025.

Moving to energy. This is a category with highly attractive dynamics and significant long-term growth potential. As I mentioned earlier, we had no presence in this category when we acquired Egypt, making it an early strategic priority.

Working closely with the Monster Energy team, we rapidly built and scaled 2-tier portfolio. In 2023, we launched Monster brand as well as the Fury, the affordable proposition like Predator in Nigeria. This allowed us to address both affordability and premiumization, supported by a range of the flavors innovation across both brands.

Execution has been both fast and effective. We rapidly scaled the business to become the #2 player within the 3 years of launch, and Egypt is now the fastest-growing energy market within CCH territories. We invested early in local production, strengthening both the cost competitiveness and supply resilience. We started by adding a line for Fury in 2023 and added a line for the Monster brand at the start of this year.

The key enabler has been our ability to combine local and global partnership across football, music and gaming to drive brand relevance and demand. For example, locally, with partnerships such as Fury with Zamalek Football Club, another one of the country's largest club, anchoring the brand in a key passion point; and globally, leveraging Fury partnership with the Chelsea Football Club to amplify reach.

We also continue to drive growth through transaction and innovation with a strong pipeline and new flavors and pack formats, ensuring we stay relevant and competitive. This is translating into strong results with the growing volume and market share and the positive contribution to both revenue and profitability. And the business has continued its strong momentum at the start of this year as well.

Let's play a short video.

[Presentation]

You can see very exciting category. Now moving on to hydration, a key pillar of our portfolio. As we said before, across Coca-Cola Hellenic Water plays an important role in our ambition of being the leading 24/7 beverage partner, enhancing portfolio coverage and strengthening our relationship with the customer, and Egypt is no different.

Prior to our acquisition, the water business was largely volume-driven and low-margin category. Due to our intentional actions, water now represents a smaller share of our portfolio, but it's higher revenue per unit case and it's more profitable, driven by productivity improvements, better mix and strong revenue per case.

We have also entered an attractive sports category with the introduction of the Powerade in 2024. Here, our focus has been on establishing the category, building awareness and educating the consumer in what is a relatively underdeveloped segment.

We are activating locally relevant sports partnership and collaborating with the local influencers, while also leveraging the global Powerade platform with the football ambassador Lamine Yamal, ensuring strong execution across key consumption occasions. We are already seeing very strong results with the Powerade achieving 78% value share in advanced hydration segment, and there is much more to come.

Moving on from our portfolio levers, let's go into our bespoke capabilities and how they are helping us winning in the marketplace. You will see the Zoran and I have talked to this field before in the context of the overall Coca-Cola Hellenic strategy. Our bespoke capabilities are a core driver of competitive advantage in [ Egypt ]. They are not generic tools, they are purpose-built for local market realities, enabling us to navigate volatility while driving growth.

Since acquisition, we have invested in building and scaling these capabilities. And today, they are embedded across how we operate from better execution, strong customer relationship and improved performance. I will start with the data insight and AI or DIAI, which has been a key enabler of our transformation in Egypt.

Before acquisition, data usage was very limited. Reporting was fragmented and static. Access was restricted across the functions, and there was no structural approach to execution or out the segmentation. This meant we were not fully leveraging the scale of the opportunity in the market.

Today, DIAI is powering our execution excellence. Suggested orders generated by algorithm are helping us increase portfolio coverage by ensuring the right assortment in the place in each outlet rather than applying the same portfolio across the whole country. In parallel, daily analysis of the cooler pictures through image recognition provides to our BD with recommended activities to improve cooler occupancy of these outlets.

We also strengthened prospecting and resource prioritization. Using our data and AI tools, we have identified over 31,000 potential outlets that we were not previously serving. We can now automatically segment outlet based on their characteristics and potential, which enable us to optimize resource allocation. This means we are not only expanding our footprint, but doing in a much more targeted and efficient way.

A good example of this is our OwnTheStreets initiatives, which I will cover in more detail on the next slide. Another example is what we are doing with the power, where we are leveraging a new AI model to map local sports event across key areas and then identify the most relevant nearby outlets. This allow us to target the right customers and execute activation where we will have the greatest impact.

Finally, we have made a step-change in the reporting capabilities. We have introduced a new dashboard analyzing data across the whole organization and providing the daily actionable insight to drive fast, more accurate decision-making. Today, more than 1,700 users are actively leveraging these tools, and there is still more to come.

Looking ahead of the rest of the 2026, we will further embedded AI-powered insight into our reporting, expanding our segmented execution approach into wholesaler and the HoReCa channels and continue to scale suggested order across regions to drive even greater impact.

A great case study is our OwnTheStreets initiatives, which we launched to activate outlet using the data-driven insight. You might remember that Ruchika spoke about this in her [ DIAI ] Bitesize presentation in 2024, but this has expanded even further since then.

Using AI-led targeting, we have activated 15,000 outlets, focusing resources where returns are highest and suggesting specific in-store activations recommendations to our sales force. The pictures on the slide show how significant the transformation is for these outlets.

And it's not just pictures, the initiatives is delivering strong results. We are seeing stronger execution in these outlets measured by our RED [ score ] execution daily, which looks at criteria, including availability of product, visibility, in-store displays and more. We have achieved 36% higher revenue per activated outlet compared to the benchmark non-activated stores, driven by strong single-serve mix.

As you heard from Naya, when discussing integration, launching Coca-Cola Hellenic-level revenue growth management tools in Egypt was a key priority. Before the acquisition, RGM decision were largely experience-led rather than data-driven. The approach was reactive and transactional with unclear pack roles, which limited affordability and premiumization offers and unstructured commercial policy where we're not always linked to performance.

Today, this has fundamentally changed. When it comes to pricing and planning, now we are deploying smart flexible pricing, running over 80 data-driven pricing scenarios during the period of very high inflation in '23 and 2024, enabling a more agile decision-making and helping expand revenue per unit case despite inflationary pressure.

On affordability, we've accelerated investment in returnable pack and clearly defined pack role to drive higher recruitment, frequency and strong entry pack execution. To drive premiumization, we focus on Schweppes and expand into higher-value categories like energy, sport drinks as well as more premium packs such as can.

And on mix, we optimized price pack architecture through disciplined commercial policy, we improved package mix within NARTD as well as category mix and achieving a leading position in transactions and single-serve sales.

Overall, we shifted from a reactive model to a structured data-driven RGM capability, which is now a key driver of growth and margins. And again, we have more to come. Earlier this year, for example, we launched 0.5 liter PET pack Trademark Coke to support further single-serve growth.

Let me bring this to life with a case on how we are growing single sell-through entry pack. The challenge was clear. We faced a diverse consumer base where affordability was critical, especially in inflationary pressure disposable income.

At the same time, returnable glass bottle was losing relevance and Coca-Cola was underperforming. Our response was focused and data-driven. We prioritized 2 affordability entry formats, returnable glass bottle in 2 sizes and 300 ml PET pack. We invested in line upgrades, new fleet for RGBs and the deposit system to ensure we have the right infrastructure to support these packs.

We improved availability through aligned trade and sales incentive and introduced micro segmentation, targeting high potential outlets and tailoring pack choices to store type and income level.

The results have been strong. We see RGB returns to growth, moving to deliver 80% growth in the 3 years versus a sharp decline in the prior 3 years. We built leadership in a key segment of the market, including single-serve, total transactions and in affordable segment. And we have significantly strengthened distribution, growing our entry pack share from 47% to 82% in the last 3 years.

Turning now to our route-to-market transformation. Before the acquisition, the route to market had clear limitations. Direct customer coverage was limited, constraining the reach. Customer service level were suboptimal, cooler penetration was low and sales team were operating with the basic tools and limited data, reducing effectiveness and visibility.

Today, this has been completely transformed. We expanded to 53% direct customer coverage and double active accounts since 2021. At the same time, we shifted to fully omnichannel model with 100% presale operations, introducing a new distributor model and data-driven wholesale transformation. We tripled the cooler base versus 2021, reaching 87% penetration in high potential router while also improving cooler profitability. This is materially strengthening our presence at the point of sale.

And on the sales tools, we moved to much more advanced data-driven model. Our teams now use image recognition for recommended activities, suggested ordering, market scanning and outlet prioritization based on potential while also identifying new growth areas.

Overall, we moved from the limited low data route to market to scalable insight-driven engine, positioning us strongly for continued horizontal and vertical expansion in 2026 and beyond.

Let me illustrate this transformation with the HoReCa case study. When we acquired the business, we had limited visibility in the HoReCa segment, particularly in high-density high-traffic areas. There was no dedicated team, no systematic outlet scanning and no performance tracking, which meant we were missing significant growth opportunity, considering the size of the segment in the market and the relevance of tourism.

We took a number of actions. We brought in Coca-Cola Hellenic bespoke tools and algorithms that give full visibility of the HoReCa outlets in the market. You might recall that Ruchika demonstrated this in her presentation on DIAI.

These tools use advanced analytics to identify and prioritize out, pinpointing high-value hotspot in cities such as Cairo and Alexandria. We then designed dedicated routes and deployed specialized route-to-market sales team to activate those locations, supported by new tools to better manage demand during peak periods.

At the same time, we invest in capabilities through our HoReCa Sales Academy. This has delivered a tangible impact. We established 35 new routes in Greater Cairo and Alexandria, including seasonal coverage along Mediterranean and expand our footprint by nearly 4,000 out. As a result, HoReCa has become our fastest-growing channel with a 35% growth in Q1 and strong single-serve mix of 76%.

Turning now to digital commerce. Before the acquisition, Egypt had no digital commerce presence, while ordering constraint by limiting working hours, restricting both convenience and customer reach. We introduced our customer portal for the direct channel in 2023, which give customers a seamless ordering experience and greater visibility. This has already scaled to 27,000 customers registered, 3x higher than 2024.

In 2024, we took learning from Nigeria and launched the WhatsApp chatbot, which is particularly used by smaller outlets customers in indirect channels. It's a simple accessible ordering solution for the much broader customer base, and it's worked particularly well in Africa markets. We saw 20x higher volume versus 2024.

Overall, we moved from having no digital commerce presence to rapidly scaling always-on digital commerce capability, improving customer convenience, strengthening engagement, expanding reach and unlocking the new growth potential across the country.

How we partner with our customers to create joint value is a fundamental how we do business in Coca-Cola Hellenic. Before the acquisition, customer engagement was limited with minimum face-to-face customer interaction and low Net Promoter Score and limited sales capabilities of our customer and support systems.

Today, this has changed completely. We improved customer management with the launch of in-house back office and customer care functions, strengthening our salespeople's capabilities and introduce daily communications and critical activities.

We've also implemented new commercial policies and launched a wholesaler partnership program, allowing us to better tailor our approach based on customer segmentation and potential. Through our customer goods, we are now listening to customers in real-time to resolve any issue as fast as possible with our Close the Loop approach.

And in 2025, I'm proud that our teams resolved 100% of the customer issues within 48 hours. And this is clearly reflected in our Net Promoter Score, which has reached 62 in 2025, up significantly year-on-year and has grown further year-to-date.

I will now hand over to Sherif, who will talk to you about the actions we have taken to develop our local talent in Egypt and support communities.

Thank you, Ado. Hello, everyone. I'm very proud to be with you today and to take you through our journey on how we develop our people and our community.

My name is Sherif Fouad. I am the People and Culture Director for Egypt. So I joined the company 6 years ago, and I have been working in HR in Egypt for the past 20 years. I think I was very fortunate to be part of the transformation journey that happened here in Egypt, specifically in the company and into people and culture.

Before CCH took over the business, our people strategy in Egypt was relatively underdeveloped. There were no formal leadership development programs, no structured recognition programs and our policies and procedures lacked clarity. As a result, the business was not viewed as an employer of choice, limiting our ability to attract and retain talent.

We wanted to bring the people and culture strategy to CCH group standards and embed our values into the Egyptian business. We have a growth mindset driven culture with high-performing standards, but one that invests in its talents. We are focused on developing capabilities, giving ownership and accountability and unlocking speed and agility.

Today, the picture in Egypt is very different. When it comes to talent development and training, we have introduced structured talent reviews, succession planning and development programs alongside dedicated leadership initiatives, and we also launched the sales and supply chain academics.

We've also made strong progress in building diverse talent pipeline, introducing internship and graduate programs and expanding opportunities for women and particularly in areas like the sales department.

On retention, we have strengthened engagement through recognition program and improved employee experience through introducing town halls, team buildings and well-being programs. We've also updated our policies and procedures to be more aligned with the group standards and market best practices.

Finally, we have significantly enhanced our employer brand. We are now ranking #5 in Egypt overall, coming from #55 back in 2022. In addition to investment in our people, we have been investing also in the local communities in partnership with the Coca-Cola Company to build trust and relevance.

Let me share some examples with you. Ramadan remains a cornerstone to our community and engagement. Our Corporate Affairs and Sustainability department is now in its 10th year of partnership with Egypt's largest NGO, Misr El Kheir, which reaches over 1 million people delivering hot meals, food boxes to thousands of families.

Our YouthEmpowered program focuses on bridging the gap between education and employment. Through our initiatives, we have reached 30,000 young people annually in the last few years, which is one of the highest outreaches across CCH markets, and we're also partnering with [ third ] technical universities for vocational training.

Finally, in communities, we are focusing on job creation for women and young people, supporting small businesses through cooler placement and integration into our value chain. We are also sponsoring intellectual disability sports Federation, enabling inclusive participation across youth sports events.

The people who are here in Cairo will get an opportunity to meet some of our salespeople and other employees later today. But for the benefit of our online audience, let's play this video that brings our people, culture and engagement to life.

[Presentation]

Thank you very much, Naya, Ado, and Sherif. So that concludes the first part of the presentation this morning. We're going to take a quick break, and then we'll return for our final section on driving future value and the Q&A session. So we'll break for 15 minutes. We'll be back at 10:45 local time. That's 8:45 British Summer Time. We'll see you soon. Thank you.

I am Konstantinos Vairlis, the CFO for Egypt. I have been in CCH for 24 years working across the group head office and diverse range of markets.

I joined Egypt in 2022 as a CFO, focusing on the integration journey. And prior to that, I was CFO in Poland and Baltics for 5 years. Earlier in my career, I worked in finance across Serbia and Montenegro, Ireland and Hungary.

You have heard a lot this morning about the growth and the opportunity we have in Egypt. The investments we made have been fundamental to drive that. Since acquiring the business, we have taken a very disciplined approach for increasing CapEx and OpEx with a clear strategy to allocate resources where they will create the most value. Importantly, we have maintained the commitment to invest even in volatile times. This was supported by the strength and the scale of CCH Group and our continuous partnership with Coca-Cola Company and the Monster Energy.

You might also remember that we secured EUR 130 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Bank in 2024, which further reinforced confidence in our strategy and provided additional support to accelerate all of our key initiatives.

Overall, our investment approach has been both disciplined and consistent, ensuring we have the capabilities, infrastructure and execution in place to fully capture the market opportunity and sustain the growth going forward. Let me go now into a little bit more detail on some of the key strategic initiatives that we invested behind since acquiring the business.

When it comes to CapEx since 2021, we have tripled our annual capital expenditure. This has been focused on capacity expansion, modernizing our production facilities, including 2 PET lines and a can line. We also expanded our cooler footprint and advanced digital and e-commerce platforms, while at the same time, we are investing continuously behind sustainability initiatives.

On OpEx, we have stepped up our commercial execution, investing in marketing, salespeople and capabilities. Overall, annual system marketing investments with the Coca-Cola Company has doubled since 2021, particularly focused on trademark of Coke and Schweppes, as we said previously.

We have added salespeople in the market and increased remuneration, critical to ensure we are covering our customers adequately in the market and serving appropriately. And of course, we have invested behind enhancing our bespoke capabilities and training for our people.

The other side of the growth equation is driving efficiencies, and we're embedding this systematically across the business, processes and operations. First, on productivity, we're modernizing production, leveraging group scale procurement and driving several initiatives like lightweighting, reformulations to structurally lower the cost base.

Operational, we have tightening of execution, improving route to market with the launch of the new distributor model, allowing us to move from the fixed cost to variable cost, having more efficient cost to supply centralizing key processes like the market to cash collection and reducing exposure to hard currency. This is about consistency, discipline and scalability.

On the digital agenda, we have rolled out the SAP S/4HANA, as Naya mentioned before, and we are deploying advanced AI-enabled sales tools to improve decision-making and salespeople effectiveness.

The result is clear. Since 2022, we have delivered a 350 basis points expansion in our gross margins alongside improvements in working capital. We have also seen resilient EBIT margins despite the significant volatility we have faced. Thank you very much for your attention, and I will hand back to Ado.

Thanks, Kostis. The progress we outlined today and the opportunity we continue to see give us clear path to drive sustainable, profitable growth in Egypt. We have already embedded Coca-Cola Hellenic best practices and bespoke capabilities in Egypt, stepped up investment and materially improved both commercial and financial performance.

But we are still early in the journey, and we will continue to invest and evolve the business to fully capture the opportunity.

Looking ahead, the fundamentals are strong, an attractive growing category with a significant headroom in per capita consumption, diverse portfolio with a clear expansion potential and strong capabilities that help us grow volume while improving both pricing and mix and driving share gains.

Combined with operational leverage and ongoing efficiency gains, this underpins a very clear midterm algorithm to deliver double-digit organic revenue growth and consistent margin improvement each year. And we are not stopping here. We have a clear ambition to become the #1 player in Egypt in the medium term.

Let's go a bit more details on top line growth opportunity, starting with the portfolio and consumer recruitment potential. We forecast strong market growth across NARTD, but we are not relying on the market alone.

In a close partnership with the Coca-Cola Company and the Monster Energy team, we are actively driving recruitment. We will continue to leverage our deep partnership across key passion points, football, music and food, focusing in particular on our strategic priorities categories, sparkling and energy to further build and drive increased per capita consumption.

This summer, we have very exciting activations around the FIFA World Cup, which started with the trophy tour I mentioned earlier this year and with activities ongoing throughout the tournament.

For example, we will see here today the special edition pack we launched to celebrate Egypt historic win on July 3. While we see a clear runway within our existing portfolio, beyond that, there is a good opportunity to expand into new categories with the ambition to build a true 24/7 portfolio over time.

Already in 2026, we launched new flavor across existing brands such as Strawberry Malt, and we will soon launch Coke Coffee with unique proposition catering to consumers looking for a caffeine boost.

Looking ahead, we also have more we can do with our capabilities. We will further scale segmented execution and invest in DIA embedding AI, data-driven insights into more decision-making and expand coverage more intelligently.

We have more to do on RGM with opportunities to continue growing revenue per case through premiumization, category mix as well as continue to drive our affordable strategy. We will continue to accelerate our route-to-market expansion, strengthening our presence in the Greater Cairo and in HoReCa , expanding our distributor model and increasing our visited universe fueled by DIA.

Let me conclude by saying how excited I am about the future in Egypt with growing categories and a clear road map to broaden our offering and distinct capabilities. We are very well positioned to accelerate consumer recruitment and capture the next phase of growth. This all underpinned by our strong system partnership and our continued commitment to invest. Thank you very much for your attention. And now I will hand over to Naya to close.

Thank you, Ado. Thank you, Ado, and all the team who have presented and worked behind the scenes on bringing this to life.

Let me close where I started. We're excited, and I hope you are too, because Egypt is a large dynamic market with clear growth potential. Since acquisition, we have strengthened the business and built resilience despite volatility.

Our portfolio, physical capabilities and partnership with the Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy are driving stronger execution and performance. And the disciplined investments we're making are accelerating growth and creating transferable learnings for Africa, particularly ahead of the completion of the acquisition of CCBA. Egypt is no longer simply an acquisition story. It is becoming a growth story and an important proof point for how CCH can combine disciplined integration, local execution and group scale capabilities to create sustainable value.

Thank you for your attention. I will now hand back to Jemima to host the Q&A session.

Thank you very much, Naya. I'd like to invite Ado and Kostis back on to the stage and also invite Zoran and Anastasis to join us. We'll just get a couple more chairs added to the stage.

Before we start taking questions, let me just explain briefly how this will work. I will start with some live questions in the room, and please make sure you wait for the microphone before asking your question.

[Operator Instructions].

All right. Why don't we get started with Sanjeet.

I have a couple of questions, please. Firstly, on market share. I think you highlighted a 200 basis points increase. I think your competitor has gone down 600 basis points, but there's a gap there. I think probably local brands have taken a lot of share. So can you just talk about how the local brands have been developing since boycotts and where we are on that into 2026? That's my first question.

And my second question is just on profitability. I think Kostis mentioned EBIT margins have been resilient in recent years despite the volatility. Can you just remind us of what the margins were when you inherited the business? And is there any kind of structural gap to not get you to group levels over time?

So I think that's over to you first, Ado.

Yes. Thank you for the question. As I presented today, you saw that the gap between us and Pepsi has been reduced from 13 percentage points to 5%. And very well noticed that there is something in between as well.

Of course, during the boycott of '23 and '24, the local players gained some share as expected. But we are very proud that how our portfolio hold during this period and we even grow the share. What we are seeing very recently on those local brands that they are on declining amount. So we are very much confident that share that has been regained over the last period, we have the good projection to continue to grow. And looking to our midterm ambition, as I said just in my closing word, we are clearly targeting to be a key player in Egypt.

As we said over the last years, we navigated very high inflation, extreme FX volatility and the boycotts. And as a result, of course, the EBIT margins were under pressure. However, we are very pleased that we see gross profit margins expansion. And since '25, even our margins are expanding. So in the midterm, we feel confident with all the moves we did on the quality of the revenue and especially on the volume growth, put together with the price mix and the category expansion, we will -- and all the cost initiatives that we have made that the margins will remain resilient and we'll see further improvement in the midterm.

Fantastic. Can we go to Andrea. And please can you just also introduce yourself for the webcast as well.

Andrea, Bank of America. I had a question on -- of course, on energy. You showed a slide where the category is projected to grow at 25%, 30%, which is basically tripling over 5 years. Your share is 16%, I think you showed, but presumably, you grow faster than the category. So very significant growth. So could you go a bit deeper, for example, where your distribution is, how far that can go also the profitability of the category versus the rest of your business? How profitable will this key engine be?

And then my -- I'll just wait, I'll ask a follow-up after.

Ado, do you want to start?

Thank you for the question. So -- as I present, we are very excited about the energy potential in Egypt market overall. We are -- that was one of the first choice after acquisition that we start with the energy category and critically playing the both in affordable and premium segment.

Having said that, this is really the unique, I think we are the only player to play on both segments, and that really give us a solid leverage moving forward.

Looking to per capita overall, last 3 years, we see solid growth, I mean, 150% over the last 2 years. But still comparing the Egypt market to the rest of the Coca-Cola Hellenic footprint, we are below. At the moment, energy per capita is 15.5%. As I mentioned, with the solid growth in our business, it's doubled in 2025. And we see also the solid results this year.

I think the -- together with the Monster Energy, the team and overall really targeting those local passion points that I was presenting, partnering with one of the strongest clubs in a country like Zamalek and being in a gaming and being in a football, leveraging on Fury and sponsorship with the Chelsea in EPL, which is very well watched and followed in Egypt. I think we are really targeting the good passion point of the local market relevance.

And then everything that fuel with our RGM framework, route to market and overall execution capabilities, I'm really looking and exciting about period and years in front of us. On distribution level, we are progressing. As in any other market, there are still opportunities to further growth. But looking at the progress over the last 3 years, I'm really happy and I'm quite confident that we will capture further growth via distribution.

On profitability per se, overall, you are very well known that Energy has the highest revenue per case across our markets. That's not changed in Egypt as well. We are very happy with the profitability of Energy category. I will not go in the details. For me, the critical is that we are highly accretive business to overall our business and both an affordability proposition with the Fury and the Monster Energy.

So fueling by innovation, capability, distribution, with the great tools that the Monster Energy team always have, future looks very bright.

Just maybe to add on this, like in this category, there's a lot of consumer demand there and the category is growing across. And here in Egypt now, we're in a position where we can play in both mainstream as well as the affordable segment.

So from the RGM perspective, there is a lot of opportunity in terms of how we can capture more out of this category.

The follow-up is on your execution capabilities, more though looking ahead, potentially what you could do with CCBA. You think of RGM data route to market, where do you see -- probably all 3, but where do you see the bigger opportunity at CCBA or what needs more improvement versus what you're finding now?

As we mentioned earlier, the blueprint that we have from Egypt, but also the learnings from Nigeria are placing us in a great position to really plug and play or lift and shift the approach overall. Every market in CCBA is very different. There are opportunities in different sort of from a different perspective of the capabilities like South Africa and Kenya, they do have very strong overall base, both in terms of RGM and route-to-market.

So as we speak and as we're in the process of getting ready, we will try to see how we can activate some of the toolkits that we have in the blueprint and towards microsegmentation, for example. There are some other markets, CCBA, but they do have the basics, and we would need to a little bit accelerate. So sky is the limit in terms of how we'll be going after, but I want to stress here that it's a very good overall at the moment base for each of these markets, and we're going to bring our bespoke capabilities to really accelerate more the journey there, both in RGM and route-to-market as well as the digitized overall commerce and AI tools, not to mention also the customer development.

So this would be the areas that we'll be looking after.

Great. Let's go to you, Laurence.

Just thinking about the amount of CapEx you put into the business so far, there was slide sort of showing it's gone up 3x. You sort of at the limit of the amount of CapEx you need to put in? Or what's the sort of ongoing percent of sales do you think you need to be putting in on an annual basis?

Yes. Indeed, as we spoke, we invested heavily on revenue generation and putting coolers -- increasing the coolers footprint and additional capacities. We'll continue with that. Definitely revenue-generating asset purchases is part of our focus, increasing the capacity, digital agenda, I mean, by further increasing our e-commerce platforms and of course, several sustainability initiatives.

So Egypt will be higher than the average of the group spend as a percent of revenue.

And Laurence, if I can add here is that we always said that at the early stage since the acquisition of Egypt, we never slowed down behind our strategic plan, the growth opportunity that we see in the country. And despite the volatility and the challenges that we face, the leverage of the group allowed us to continue to invest and you do see the return of this investment today in the market, and we will continue to do so as we do believe that the opportunity is still ahead of us.

And just to follow on, you've had enormous success with the adding energy to the portfolio here. Elsewhere in the CCH portfolio, you do have alcoholic drinks and Egypt is a market that does have a relatively healthy alcoholic consumer base despite its dynamic background.

What do you see any opportunity to bring alcoholic drinks into the Egyptian market? And would you consider doing so?

Ado, [indiscernible]

Is there an opportunity?

I think at the moment, I was explaining that the current category and brand, they still have the space to grow with innovation without the current category that we are playing. So at the moment, in a medium-term period, we don't see entering in alcohol.

Yes. And maybe I can add here like when we talk about RGM, it always starts with really proper and intentional reading of what the consumer is asking. And in that exercise, identifying, prioritizing and capture revenue boost is the very first step we deep dive, combined with obviously, the assumptions from external environment.

So we never say no. That said, at the moment, the consumer is asking more when it comes to playing and win in the overall NARTD and of course, sparkling, energy and the rest of the portfolio.

Great. Can we go to Nadine and introduce yourself?

Nadine Sarwat, Bernstein. Two questions from me, please, perhaps a more local to Egypt question and then a bigger picture question.

So obviously, for historical geopolitic reasons, Pepsi has been the #1 player. You guys outlined that in your market share chart, although the gap is closing. Can you give us an idea of practically how can you overcome the stickiness that comes with investors? We hear consumers gravitating to Pepsi for generations. How can you drive that further? And then my second question is obviously a lot of compare and contrast to other African markets, and you answered that quite well. What are the key learnings. Could you actually detail some ways that your other markets in Africa or CCBA? What are some things that we might see [indiscernible]

To Egypt?

We'll start with Ado.

Thank you for your question. As we outlined that we last 4 years or since acquisition, we see the solid progress on narrowing the gap between us and competitors Pepsi. As I also outlined in the presentation and Naya, I will start with not just action, but there are numerous actions that we take since acquisition, and we will continue driving those even more speed, more agile and with more capable team.

I will start with RGM framework. I think that's assets that really help us in the last 4 years, and we see the tangible benefits, how we navigate volatility, inflationary pressure, currency devaluation, but still growing share and volume.

I will continue with the route to market, our bespoke capabilities and the all transformation that we did so far with the wholesaler, moving 33 depot to the 10 reducing and then introducing distributor model or capability that we are doing on the digitalization and introducing those multiple source of solution for the customer for ordering.

But then I truly believe together with the Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy, the team, I see the great progress on brand equity. And I truly believe the recent years, what we are doing on those local relevant passion points such as football, playing and actively associating with the local football club Al Ahly, Zamalek. Ramadan, another great occasion throughout the year, the most important month in the yearly calendar, what we are doing there with the meals and how we are associating that overall occasion.

So I truly believe that biggest advantage also is Naya mentioned, playing between those affordability and premiumization segment, and we have the right portfolio to do so.

So we are very happy with RGM, with OTC framework, but there are many things that we can do more. For instance, this year launch of the half-liter bottle that I was just showing is absolutely delivering incremental value. It boosts overall the single-serve mix. And as I mentioned in my presentation, the overall, we are already a key player in certain segments of the market.

We are leader in modern trade. We are leader in HoReCa, we are leader in single-serve and in affordable segment. So that gives us huge confidence that we are on the right track and moving to the narrow gap further.

And if I can add, we are all -- we're playing in such a great industry overall, respecting competition and all the players, we all have a role to play in terms of increasing the pie and capture more per capita. And at the same time, of course, when it comes to us on the share gain, making sure, to your point, on the capability overall to continuously focus on what we do great when it comes to execution excellence.

We always lead the market and be able to actually adjust because it's a very dynamic market. like everywhere. At the same time, making sure that we get the learnings from what's working, what's not working, lifting and shifting from Cairo to the rest of the Egypt, readjusting the tactical plans. So it's an ongoing overall game plan out there.

To your second question, when it comes to similarities with other markets, CCBA. Again, the beauty about all these markets is that there is a wide range overall of market dynamics and levels of maturity per market. For example, some markets are more developed in CCBA versus where Egypt was when we acquired like South Africa. Others are more easily comparable like Kenya, for example, Uganda and Ethiopia. And what's important is that we do have the approach overall that we presented and the learnings.

At the same time, we respect the differences per market. Where Egypt is different and where we see every market having differences, it starts with the consumer relevance, which is very important. Consumers do have patterns across the globe, but they are very market relevant. And we're doing great job together with Coca-Cola Company to honor the overall global brand, but at the same time, make it relevant. So this part is very specific market by market. Then when it comes from the route to market, we may have indirect in many markets, but the nature of indirect is very different market by market. A wholesaler or distributor in Egypt is very different than the wholesale and distributor in Nigeria or from any of the CCBA markets. So many opportunities out there and at the same time, respecting obviously, the individualities or the particularities that are set market by market.

One thing to add, Nadine, is that Schweppes business in Egypt is something that truly stands out. This has been a brand for so long that is being so well nurtured and really stands out. You might have heard it's the largest Schweppes business globally. And that's really something that other African markets, irrespective, even those who are pretty good, for example, like South Africa, can really take lots of inspiration from.

Innovation of flavors, positioning, brand communication, packaging, look and feel, activation in the market is really something that is very replicable from Egypt to other markets in Africa, but quite also beyond. So that's one really beautiful stronghold.

So following up on that, what is behind Schweppes huge success in this market? How much of it is a historical precedent that maybe we don't have a full appreciation for versus actions taken by you guys over the last couple of years or the previous owners?

Well, one word that comes is consistency. We had a team dinner the other night, and there was this conversation, how long actually Schweppes is such a strong brand in Egypt, and it goes way back to Coca-Cola Company having fantastic brand positioning and commercials that talked about the famous secret of Schweppes and what is secret of Schweppes that somehow from then on kept maintaining this brand.

And another thing is that the investment in refreshing the look and feel, even when we came here for the first time to -- as part of due diligence, we were impressed when we saw the package plus bottle with this beautiful sleeve, cans was amazing. So brand part together with the look and feel of the package and overall communication, but done consistently with a great care.

And maybe I can ask you sometimes we talk innovation and we think like a new -- completely new product. The work that is done by the Coca-Cola Company when it comes to innovating in flavors, for example, within Schweppes, which is making it very attractive.

Great. Let's go to Mitch.

It's Mitch Collett from Deutsche Bank. I think, Ado, you said earlier that in the outlets that are fully activated, you get 36% higher sales revenue. Can you just give us like what is the total number of outlets in Egypt? What proportion of those are fully activated? And how far can you push that? That's my first question.

Thank you, Mitch, for the question. On the street that I was presenting is at the moment, we have the 20,000 outlets activated. Out of overall at the moment, over 150,000 that are on the market that we are covering the directly.

So at the moment, we are covering the 53% direct coverage. And as I explained, those fully activated out bringing absolute incremental growth versus non-fully activated. The comparison basis was 36% as you outlined.

But it's not just about expanding the coverage. And I think I always elaborated during the break. That's one parameter of overall how we are doing the business in Egypt, how we are progressing to increase the coverage. But I want to really stress the importance of active outlets. And those has been the double since acquisition of 2021. Those are outlets who are ordering regularly and repeatedly. So what I'm trying to say also, we are looking to the quality of the coverage and outlets rather than just chasing for the numbers and the quantity. So yes.

And then one for Anastasis because I don't think you had one yet. Ado talked about, I think, double-digit revenue growth as the sort of medium-term aspiration. How does that kind of flow through into incentivization within Egypt? And then if you think about CCBA, which has had double-digit revenue growth coming into you acquiring it and all the tools you're likely to deploy, what is the sort of right level of medium-term aspiration for CCBA.

Well, I think we will have the chance to discuss in detail our medium-term growth with CCBA once the completion is done, and we expect that to be done over the next course of the months ahead of us within 2027. What I can say for CCBA in particular, is that nothing has changed from how excited we are on the opportunity that CCBA has for CCH. And we've always been discussing with Zoran and the rest that this is a great top line opportunity growth. I mean we do expect to bring acceleration in the business. But bear with us when it comes to the specific midterm guidance that will come once we're ready to communicate that.

Great. Can we go to Javier?

It's Javier Gonzalez-Lastra from Berenberg. I have 2 questions. First one is on Zero Sugar products. If you could let us know where you stand in the market in Egypt with regards to those variants and whether there are any plans to grow that in a meaningful way?

And then secondly, on the distributors, I'd love to hear a little bit how you work with distributors. What are your targets with them? Do you intend normally to represent a certain percentage of the business? What is the -- what are the key KPIs that you're looking at and how you develop them?

I think that's over to Ado to start.

Thanks. What we see the Zero, particularly the performance over the last couple of years, we are really encouraged with the overall results. Zero is growing faster than regular our products. Overall, looking to the segment and the size of the business, Egypt comparing to most European market, I would say there are still huge space and opportunity to capture. I need to say that consumer in Egypt, they are very still the sweet tooth and looking really for the more sugar products rather than Zero.

And I think that's something -- the segment that definitely will be under focus moving forward. We are happy with the results. At the moment, we are playing just in Coca-Cola and Sprite as a zero proposition. Having said that, there is still great room to grow within those 2 brands, but also to expand beyond those 2 brands within categories.

On distributors, that's concept that the overall acquisition, we didn't have here. And as I was elaborating on the route to market, the piece that both distributors and wholesaler was very flat with the same commercial policies and very often not towards really the targeted value things, how we're measuring overall their performance.

So since acquisition, we moved the 33 out of the depots reduced to 10, meaning we're really utilizing the route-to-market capabilities from Hellenic and introduce distributors model.

Those models, I need to say it's extension of our business. So distributor is not purely indirect market. Those are the high quality sharing the data on the sales and the extension of the business rather than wholesaler where it's a different parameter on the KPIs that we are looking.

At the moment, we are 60-40. I would say the 60% is indirect coverage, including both distributors and wholesalers. The ratio will be remain 50-50 direct and indirect coverage. But looking forward, we'll be more emphasized on distributors model, having in mind fewer benefits, utilizing the data and expansion of the business to better and quality expand our footprint on the market.

Yes. And just to add at the end of the day, for us, what's important is what Zoran has shared in many of the calls, we call it S=1, which is we see every outlet as a segment of one. The distributor is a partner who is serving an outlet, and it's very important to your question when it comes to incentivization or KPIs to connect every KPI, not only between us, the distributor, but all the way to the end outlet.

Great. Can we go to Ed?

I'm Ed Mundy from Jefferies.

Just to pick up on Mitch's question again. I appreciate you're not giving guidance for CCBA, but mathematically, we right to think it could -- if it does grow double digit, it could add maybe 100 basis points to group growth.

I appreciate this is not the forum, but just to make sure our math is correct on that, number one. And then second of all, one for you, Zoran. I think I really enjoyed Sherif's presentation around how the HR and culture in Egypt has changed quite a lot as you brought over some of the CCH best practices and structure, but it's interesting you've just brought in a new Chief People and Culture Officer, Toon, into the business. I'd love to get your perspectives on where you're looking to take HR and culture within CCH as part of that move. As part of bringing the Toon on to your executive team.

Thank you. Overall, I think Toon is taking from a very solid base. And this is about how do we evolve our people and culture, organization to be in line or actually to go ahead where we are aspiring to go, especially knowing that our growth ambition is wider, and we really want to see the ways how we can accelerate in a quality way. That requires constant nurturing of the culture and nurturing of the talent, depth, bench and competence.

So we just had the other day as a team conversation with Toon where he was sharing with us this [indiscernible] after his first couple of months, and we were -- had an excellent conversation and very excited, motivation -- really motivated how we want to take it further. This is not about fixing. This is not about revolution, but we really want to ensure that we keep up the momentum.

And as you know, occasionally, it is useful for all of us to get someone from the outside in who quickly grasps our own culture, ways of doing things as he really did, but also giving us a new fresh lens, which is really good.

At the end of the day, it has to ensure -- this evolution has to ensure on one side that we have competent people, people who know where we are going and what our ambition is. And thirdly, that we constantly work on the inspiration and motivation. And we just recently received the results from our engagement, which were very encouraging to see that how -- our overall engagement in Hellenic has improved to all-time high level.

Now again, this is not about the number, but our hungryness to really learn what we hear, what's working well, why is it working well? And what are the areas where we need to improve and do better.

So I see that as exciting chapter. As also in a short time ahead of us, we will be expanding the footprint also. And culture is going to play an important role in the chapter of CCBA becoming part of Hellenic. Equally, as the case was with Egypt, whatever Ado and Sherif have presented, the underlying red thread has been culture evolution of the team. And I'm extremely proud to see that when we got in Egypt results that Egypt really moved to be in our top 5 countries by engagement.

And when we walked market 1 or 2 months back, hopefully, what you will experience today, I mean, you will see that spark in the eyes of competent, motivated hungry people. That's for me, the best representation of the culture when we see how those people who are interacting with customers really how they feel and what they radiate. I like to say that in our business and what our nucleus of our business is, we can be most competent and most motivated in many roles. But if we are -- if we don't ensure that with those who are every day with customers, our model cannot work. It's as simple as that. So we all play a role and remind ourselves that culture has to serve the purpose and help those who are every day directly selling and serving customers and those who are helping to sell. If either of us cannot answer the question, am I selling or helping to sell in our culture, then I think that person or that role will have a problem because you are either of the 2. And that evolution is just going to keep amplifying that in new creative fresh way.

Yes. And he keeps coming back on the guidance on -- with CCBA pro forma, but I wouldn't give again the same answer until we are done through the completion of the transaction, I think we need to be a little bit more patient, and we will come with a very specific guidance for the midterm.

But again, the fundamentals are excitement about CCBA and the work we're going to do with the Coca-Cola Company is definitely about growth that will also translate to earnings. So that's what I can say for now.

Can we get to Aron.

Aron Adamski, Goldman Sachs. So I think at one of your previous buyside events, you highlighted that Nigeria is one of the most efficient businesses when it comes to OpEx as a percentage of sales. So I was wondering if you -- when you compare and contrast Egypt today to where Nigeria is, how does it compare? And where do you see further opportunities for improvement over the coming years?

Let me take that one because that's a bit of more group and comparing business units. And yes, Nigeria is one of the most efficient when it comes to the OpEx as a percent of revenue. Equally, what we have to say is that for Egypt, you need to also understand since the acquisition to where we are today, they had to deal with certain -- not just volatility from currency devaluations that had an accounting translating element on OpEx as a percent of revenue. Maybe you remember in '24, we were discussing about the remeasurement on intercompany loans.

So it's not a quite fair comparison. What I can say is that the team here has performed a series of restructuring and efficiencies when it comes to the route to market and addressing certain productivity elements, which we expect them to remain on a recurring basis on the efficiency level.

We will look, of course, into more opportunities. But on the same time, in Egypt, there is a certain element of stepped up in investments that had an impact on certain incremental marketing investments, as you have seen executing in there, which has elevated the OpEx as a percent of revenue. But overall, we are positive. And as Kostis was saying earlier, we have seen a good progress over the last year since we see the stabilization in the margins, and we expect to continue to see the same going forward.

Yes. That's very helpful. And when it comes to -- I mean, you showed on the slide, you have an ambition for double-digit sales growth. I guess with all of that comes a lot of operating leverage.

Internally, when you think about it, how much of it will you let drop through the bottom line? Or are you going to reinvest most of it since there is so much to go after in Egypt?

You mean for Egypt now or?

For Egypt, yes.

Look, for Egypt, a big element is the quality of the revenue, as you mentioned, which is coming, of course, from the volume growth and a very positive price mix and then the mix you saw from all the initiatives from the Adult and the Energy. But also wherever there are opportunities in COGS through lightweighting reformulations and also the distributor model that we moved which is quite important for the cost to supply efficiencies. This can give the scalability and give the operating leverage opportunities that we saw already in the gross profit margin quite heavily.

And to your question to what extent of that will purely grow to 100% on the margin or being reinvested back in the business. The answer is the same as we do across the group. We always make sure that we continue to invest for the growth of the business. We said that before also on -- I think there was a CapEx question on whether we will continue to do that. And yes, equally, the productivity efficiencies and whatever leverage we drive through is not just to 100% squeeze, let's say, the margins out of the business, but actually create a space to allow for the marketing investments, for the execution, for the people investment, the capabilities built up that will continue to generate growth and accelerate the growth of the business.

So not 100% definitely as we have not done across the group, but certainly, an improvement will be there as well.

Great. Let's go to Simon.

Simon Hales from Citi. I mean just following up on some of the comments there. I mean, can you talk about where the return on invested capital is of the business in Egypt now? And clearly, you've had some geopolitical and macro headwinds to contend with. We've clearly seen an acceleration, particularly more in the business. Are we at the point now where we really start to see the returns of this business step up towards the cost of capital that you laid out at the time of the acquisition in 2022?

Since you're looking at me, I'll take it, although Kostis is ready to say about Egypt, but I know you want for me on that one.

Yes, as you would expect, given the timing of the acquisition and what has happened in the meantime, you would expect that the return on invested capital of Egypt is below the average of the group.

But we are pleased with the progress that we have seen happening, especially after -- since '25. Of course, it's not there when it comes to the WACC, but the stability that we have seen happening over the last year, certainly it's closing it and it's starting to develop. It's a bit on the near term still, right? So we will continue to invest in the business. So we don't expect it to be at the levels of the overall group, but we are very pleased with the performance that -- and the progress that we see going forward. Yes.

And can I just ask a second one, just a more general one around the Egyptian business more broadly. Is there anything particular we should be aware of geographically within Egypt? Do you have a different share in Cairo compared to other major markets? Is there any particular learnings you can take from somewhere you're more dominant versus competitors into other regions? Or are all the comments you've really talked about today, national comments, there's not a great deal of a regional difference?

Thanks for the question. So operating in a country with nearly 120 million people, there are differences. Absolutely, the Mediterranean area and Alexandria comparing to upper Egypt, which is,there are differences. And there are different consumption patterns. There are differences in passion points of those people. And we're absolutely using those data, insights and analytics and our capabilities, to specifically address those regions.

And having said that, there are the different performance in the region as well and different the KPIs and targets that we are looking for those areas. So operating in such a massive market, of course, you need to have this double-clicking granularity how we activated outlets in Mediterranean in June versus January, how those out playing the role in Ramadan, how in the peak season when it's hot. So there are absolutely too many algorithms that we are putting in the tools to really then together with Coca-Cola Company, developing the plan, how really to capture the maximum value and opportunities out of those.

And you may have heard when we talk about the overall AI and data capability, we talk a lot about microsegmentation, which is very important these days. So while here, we share the full story, this is an outcome overall out of very segmented plans city by city, area by area, customer by customer, especially in the era of AI where everything is about individual overall targeting, you cannot go and you cannot create a one size fits all in terms of the how of the strategy.

If I may just add even in the Cairo today, there are different to activate around the pyramid and the new Cairo, totally different in approach and pack size and [indiscernible]. So even within the one city, we don't need to go out to see the differences, but -- and the way how we are activating differently even with one city, just to...

Simon, I want to build on what Ado and Naya said, using little hook to make 2 points. One is that we were last month in north of Egypt, Alexandria, Marassi, that whole North Coast strip. And to see the situation on the ground, how it was 18 months ago and how it is today, it was very inspiring to see from 2.

And it comes with everything that Naya and Ado said. So really pleased to see that this is not only about Cairo, but really looking at the whole country. And that brings me to the second point, which makes -- I want to really make sure that I make this point while we are all together and with everyone on webcast. We really see Egypt as a tremendous long-term opportunity. It is inspiring to see how country is developing.

So one thing is what we do here with our business that deals with the market, but also Egypt is becoming one of our corporate service center locations. Two days ago on Sunday, we had the opening of our new digital hub that we are opening here in Cairo, leveraging on the fact that there is excellent vast population of highly educated people from University of Cairo and other universities here.

And we had an event with Minister of Finance, Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade and other officials and partners, where they could see already 250 people employed on the journey to have 450 people next year. And from here, we are serving and various products that we talk today that you will see later in the market, they are all produced here. This is just to say that we have confidence and believe that the infrastructural and overall economic development of the country is evidently progressing in a beautiful way, and we see huge opportunity that our presence will be stronger, more widespread, both in the outlets, but also both for the group and how much we can leverage the talent, human capital of Egypt for the purpose of our whole group.

So I just wanted to make that point that, yes, we are here today because we wanted to show the progress, what's happening on the ground, but to really provide perspective why we really see Egypt in a much more leveraged way.

Let's go back to Sanjeet.

I have a couple more questions, please. Firstly, on pricing. You've seen a lot of pricing in the last few years and have successfully navigated the FX headwinds. I noticed in Q1, your pricing stepped down to around 5%, which feels like it's probably below inflation.

So can you just walk us through that kind of step down? And when you talk about double-digit organic growth expectations in the medium term, what role does pricing play in that after the heavy increases? And would you expect double-digit volume growth within that organic revenue expectation?

I can say...

Is this for Egypt or for the...

Yes.

So I would like -- I will start with really the pricing, how it was playing the critical role over the last couple of years. And we don't look the pricing just for the quarter. I want you really to look at the pricing over the years and a CAGR. So if you extrapolate out the pricing initiatives in acquisition and how we navigate the business through inflationary pressure and currency devaluation in Egyptian pound, you will see that overall with the pricing we covered equally the overall the cost coming from the cost inflation and also the covering the currency devaluation.

So over the last 3 years and period, we really see that we are covering in full bit exceeding the overall inflation looking to the 3-year CAGR.

Now moving forward, overall, Naya mentioned and repeated the RGM framework and the pricing definitely will remain the important factor of driving out the double-digit revenue growth organic and also the revenue per case. However, I really want to emphasize another thing and important part of the business, which is a mix performance. And it's not just the pack, there is a category mix, the tech mix and channel mix. And there, we really see tangible impact that we are doing this year as well. So we have step up in single-serve mix step up in the category mix, leveraging together with Coca-Cola Company and the passion point. And within the category, we see the Schweppes outperforming or outperforming other brands for the more premium versus the affordability. Energy, the business we just elaborate today, how that's bringing overall incremental and revenue in absolute algorithm.

So I would say that moving forward, we're looking for a more balanced revenue -- double-digit revenue coming from the volume, pricing and mix, everything l with the good execution in the market.

Yes. And if I can add a little overall on pricing to what Ado mentioned, pricing for us is not a task is one part of the overall RGM, which has many other elements when it comes to the mix that Ado mentioned and not only.

And then we follow 3 principles overall. One, it's data-driven, so using always prediction and different simulation models based always on elasticities. The second one is being proactive, and this is where smart pricing gets in or we see different scenarios when it comes to inflation. And as Ado mentioned, it's not like a quarterly tracking. We go for the long term in terms of sustainable growth.

And then there is the element of agility, which has to do with making sure that we are continuously tracking it as well as we apply needed contingency planning -- contingency scenarios. So these are little bit the principles.

Great. I'll wait and see if there's a few more questions in the room. In the meantime, I've got one on the webcast.

You talked to the integration framework for Egypt as well as the opportunities that were presented and some look to be quite low-hanging fruits such as the introduction of energy, implementing the RGM framework. When you look at integrating CCBA, where do you see similar opportunities? So some of that we might have covered, but I just wanted to make sure we address that one as well.

So maybe Naya, I'll hand to you.

I would just say at this moment of time, the -- I will repeat what I mentioned earlier that all these markets, every market in CCBA is very different. It starts from a different base overall. And in terms of low-hanging fruit, I would start from the 2 that we keep referring to, the revenue growth management and route to market. There is a lot to do there when it comes to next phase of growth.

That said, respecting overall the different maturity levels that each of these markets is today. And then the plus one I would put there is, obviously, all these capabilities are landing into the execution excellence that we're mentioning before. So it's not about the blueprints and the framework, but we want to see that everything is landing into best-in-class execution in the outlet and best-in-class overall customer relationships. So many things there to do. But as I mentioned, they are already in good shape in many of these markets and looking forward to start getting there and see how we can lift and shift some dealers while at the same time, getting learnings from them and apply in other markets.

Fantastic. Any final questions in the room? Aron?

I just wanted to follow up on the mix of CapEx that you've given in one of the slides. Given that this has been a bit of a turnaround story and you had to put new production lines, accelerate cooler expansion, should we expect over the next 3, 5 years, the mix of CapEx to be different than it was last year? Are you more focused on coolers now that you have the production capacity? Or is it going to be probably similar?

Look, we'll follow the growth agenda here. Coolers remains important to increase and to cover the market, of course, the capacities. And of course, the sustainability initiatives which remain quite critical.

So I believe the mix will remain the same.

Charlie?

Charlie Higgs from Rothschild & Co Redburn.

I just wanted to ask about the resiliency in Egypt and how it differs now versus when you bought it. It feels like a lot of good work has been done on affordability. Are you able to maybe share what affordable price points are as a percent of the portfolio and where you see it going forward? And then perhaps on some of the localization to reduce the hard currency exposure. Could you perhaps elaborate on what you did there in Egypt, please?

Yes. Thank you for the question. When we acquired the business in Egypt, we didn't have really the strategy behind how we are detecting affordability overall in the market.

We have the RGB the business in Egypt, but it was declining 20 years we have that business here, but it was no structure in place and what we are doing with those overall the packs. We took the learnings from Nigeria, and we totally repositioned overall that affordable pack, and we launched in the 2 packs, 192 and 350. 192 being the lowest affordable price point for the sparkling drink at the market.

And then combined with the 350 pack, which is a second pack on affordability. And third, we launched the 300 mL PET pack, bringing all of those 3 packs.

Coming back to the question about the region differences in specific, which I already elaborated. Upper Egypt, for instance, they're looking for the absolute low price point, and that's why with the RGM framework, we launched 192 at 8 EGP on that market -- on that part of the Egypt market.

350 RGB, we cover broader Egypt covering the Delta region, partially on the Cairo. Utilizing all the data insights analytics, we really go what is the best way to activate the less affluent and rural areas. So those since acquisition. And now turning to the great performance. RGB over looking to the CAGR period of the last 3 years, we're growing 18% after the 3 years prior decline. And even looking to the results in Q1 of this year, nearly 70% we're growing on RGB.

Now is the opportunity there? Yes. At the moment, that business represents around 4% of the total business.

But I need to say that we are absolutely leader in this segment. 80% is the market share in affordable segment versus the PCI, and it's more to come.

And maybe over to Kostis on the second part on the hard currency exposure.

I mean the question was -- can you repeat, please?

FX exposure in the country.

I mean, first of all, we utilized the group procurement capabilities. We turned a lot of the local -- of the contracts that we used to be on foreign exposure. We managed to make it local.

And also quite important, pricing, of course, covered part of this FX exposure. And of course, there are different other tools like hedging, we had the capital injections. We had also the company loans, which helped us really to cover this very extreme volatility.

Charlie, just to put a little bit things in perspective, the overall just from the time of the acquisition when the FX exposure and local suppliers was above 50%. Today, this has dropped to, let's say, the levels of 30%, okay?

And on the same time, as Kostis said, what we need to understand is that we are leveraging the overall group capabilities, which is also coming from a very strong established group treasury and procurement operations that are reducing certain level of exposures with hedging.

And at the earlier stages, in Egypt, hedging in foreign currency was not possible, right? So the market has been opening up since they let the Egyptian pound free-float in quarter 1, 2024. And from then on, ensuring liquidity in the market with moving from intercompany loans to capital injections, covering existing loans, FX exposure has been some of the activities we have done to make sure. And that's a playbook that we bring forward from our experience in Nigeria, Egypt and to more in CCBA eventually.

And then my follow-up question was just on the shared service center and the digital hub that you just opened. Can you maybe just outline what the ambitions are for the shared service center, what you plan to maybe move over there, how broad the remit will be and whether it has enough capacity one day to cover CCBA?

So this is one of our 3 shared service centers, actually now becomes the biggest one by number of employees. So it's here in Cairo, it's Sofia in Bulgaria, and it is Athens in Greece. And so with the growth that we are anticipating for next year, yes, we are, first of all, covering the needs of the current Hellenic footprint, and we will look and see and definitely take into account how do we also embed Coca-Cola Beverages Africa into that thing. So I cannot exactly say now, but will that be sufficient with the forecasted number of people or there is going to be more.

But clearly, we see the value in having this in-house team. And I want to emphasize, Charlie, that the opening of Cairo Hub is a result of our in-sourcing strategy. Some years back, there was a this fashion of outsourcing. And we have identified roles that we find extremely important that we want to have in-house. So today, when we see from a number of tools, product platforms, 50% or even more percent is actually everything produced in-house, where on many of our products, we own the IP rights.

And that's what really becomes an important element in our -- of many tools in the commercial ecosystem and also our supply chain ecosystem as the tool that interact extremely close.

So just to give, let's say, broader perspective, what is this part of and how much this internal, let's say, development is happening here.

And one good example of that, that we are extremely proud that we have done is our own sales academy in the metaverse. -- that we have done leveraging AI and metaverse space, where we have done that with our strategic partner, but we are the ones owning the IP rights, and we will be taking this further, for example.

Fantastic. I think that is our last question, and we're coming off on time. So perfect. So thank you all very much for your attention. We hope this has given you a great insight into Egypt. We look forward to speaking to you again soon. I'll hand back to Zoran.

I just want to -- before you close, I just want to recognize that this journey that we've seen, and we highlighted very well, but I feel -- I really want to recognize the -- also our strategic partners Coca-Cola Company.

We have here Luiz, the President of Africa; Brian, who is also A partner in Egypt and the whole Coca-Cola team, where whole journey and everything that we do is happening because of our complementary, synergistic partnership level that especially comes to be tested when some hard and challenging times are coming, and we had a fair share of that in the last few years.

But we've seen how we hold hands together, and that's extremely motivating and inspiring. And I really feel to recognize how we work and what we do together with Coca-Cola Company and as well with our -- with Monster Energy team.

These partnerships are part of our uniqueness and strength, and that's also part of our belief what we can do together. in the years ahead, and the best is yet to come.

Fantastic. Thanks, Zoran. Great. I will hand back to the operator to close the webcast online. Best to everyone with us here.

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Coca-Cola HBC's first conference call for the 2026 first quarter trading update. We have with us Zoran Bogdanovic, Chief Executive Officer; Anastasis Stamoulis, Chief Financial Officer; and Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. [Operator Instructions] I must also advise that this conference is being recorded today, Thursday, May 7, 2026.

I will now pass the floor to one of your speakers, Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Good morning, everyone. Thank you for joining the call. I'm here with our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. We'll start with some opening remarks from Zoran, and then, open the floor to your questions. Please keep to one question and a follow-up, waiting for us to answer the first question before moving to your follow-up. We have about an hour for the call today, which should give plenty of time for a good discussion.

Finally, I must remind you that this conference call contains various forward-looking statements. These should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements in our trading update this morning.

And with that, I will turn the call over to Zoran.

Thank you, Jemima, and good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining the call.

Q1 is typically our smallest quarter, but it has been a busy one for our people and our business. It was filled with many activations and focused execution of targeted initiatives working in close partnership with our customers to deliver our strategy.

Let me share 3 key highlights from these results. First, we have delivered a strong quarter of high-quality organic revenue growth, led by volume growth across all 3 segments and revenue per case expansion. This is a good start to the year, in line with our expectations even in challenging and unpredictable external environment. I'm proud that Q1 is the 12th consecutive quarter that we have delivered volume growth.

Second, we gained a further 110 basis points of value share in Non-alcoholic Ready-To-Drink year-to-date, building on strong gains in 2025 and continuous gains in the last 6 years. In Sparkling, we also had a good start to the year, gaining 50 basis points of value share year-to-date. This is a testament to our unique 24/7 portfolio, execution excellence and focus on joint value creation with our customers.

And thirdly, we are reiterating our 2026 guidance today for organic revenue and EBIT growth. Despite heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty, we remain confident that our portfolio, bespoke capabilities, people and proven track record position us to continue to win in the market.

So a good quarter, and I'd like to sincerely thank all our colleagues, customers, suppliers and our partners for their ongoing efforts and support.

I'll now share some details on the Q1 performance, and then, Anastasis and I will be happy to take your questions. Organic revenue grew 11.6% with volumes up 9.6% and revenue per unit case up 1.8%. Reported revenue grew 12%, driven by strong organic growth and a small benefit from FX translation.

I'm really pleased with the level of volume growth we have delivered in a mixed environment. Innovation, localized activations and strong partnerships contributed to a strong underlying volume performance. Excluding the benefit from 4 extra selling days, volumes grew about 3.5% with growth across all 3 of our segments in the quarter. As well as this, our targeted actions to grow transactions are working with transactions growing ahead of volumes. We continue to leverage our revenue growth management toolkit to actively drive all 3 levers of volume, price and mix.

Our leading RGM capability enables us to navigate mixed consumer environments by offering a range of affordability and premiumization initiatives and tailor pricing in each market based on local inflation and currency dynamics. Affordability solutions and value offers continue to be relevant for many of our consumers, and these are embedded in our RGM plans and execution in the market.

In the quarter, we maintained our focus on entry and smaller packs to manage critical price points, for example, by further expanding 200 mL cans in Poland and Austria. Promotions also remained an important part of our RGM strategy. In Q1, we leveraged Easter in relevant markets by increasing promotions on multi-serve packs, which play an important role in the at-home drinking occasion during this period.

As you know, we always look to balance our affordability initiatives with premiumization opportunities leveraging our data-driven segmented execution approach to personalized portfolio assortments and meet specific consumer needs. This is driven both by our RGM initiatives around package mix and pricing as well as our strong activations and innovations that create relevant consumer experiences and strengthen brand equity. For example, in Q1, we drove growth of our premium small glass bottle of HoReCa channel. And we delivered mid-teens growth in Schweppes, supported by our locally tailored Flavor of the Quarter campaign.

This good performance in Adult Sparkling contributed to improvements in category mix alongside continued strong growth of energy. We also continued with targeted actions to improve package mix, such as the launch of new 500 mL single-serve pack for Trademark Coke in Egypt. Overall, I'm pleased we drove a further 140 basis points improvement in single-serve mix at the group level.

Now turning to performance by category. Again here, the volume growth benefited by about 6 percentage points from the 4 extra selling days tailwind. But overall, we are pleased with the performance across our strategic priority categories. Sparkling volumes grew by 9.4% in the quarter. Trademark Coke grew high single digits, and Coke Zero grew high teens. Coke Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine, or 0.0 as we call it, continued to grow strong double digits, supported by integrated execution, including the launch of a new visual identity across packs in 16 markets.

The new visual identity really stands out with the bold black and gold pack. We are excited about the opportunity for 0.0, an excellent proposition for adult drinkers wanting to monitor their caffeine intake, particularly in the evening occasion. We continue to activate Coke & Meals campaigns across our markets with a truly localized approach. By partnering with relevant food influencers and celebrating local food culture, we drove stronger engagement and transaction growth.

In Egypt, the local team even achieved a Guinness World Record in serving the most community meals with Coca-Cola in 1 hour during a Ramadan meal festive event.

Sprite continued to see strong momentum with volumes up mid-teens. We are excited to leverage the newly launched It's That Fresh global platform with basketball partnerships, the NBA and Euro League. We also launched the new flavor innovation, Sprite Chill in 8 markets during the quarter, and we'll be rolling it out further this year.

We also delivered high single-digit growth in Adult Sparkling, driven by Schweppes, as we continue to tap into both mixability and straight drinking occasions. Another element innovation in the quarter was a new flavor, Cherry Pepper, that we launched across both Schweppes and Kinley.

Energy continued its strong growth trajectory with volumes up 27% and strong double-digit growth across all 3 segments. In the quarter, we launched innovations of Monster, including Monster Viking Berry and Zero Sugar flavor with Valentino Rossi across many of our markets. Both launches have had a great start ahead of our expectations, and we are excited to see how the rest of the year goes. We also continue to leverage football activations in Nigeria and Egypt to drive strong growth in Predator and Fury respectively.

As you know, we are prioritizing the out-of-home channel in coffee, and I'm pleased that out-of-home volumes grew by 39%, as we expanded Costa Coffee and Caffè Vergnano across existing outlets and recruited new ones. As we expected, total coffee volumes still declined in the quarter due to this deliberate shift in focus, but we expect the overall category to return to growth in the second half of the year.

Moving to Stills, where volumes grew 4.1%. Sports Drinks continued its great performance, delivering strong double-digit growth across all segments. We launched Powerade innovations such as Powerade Active Water, Powerade FIFA limited editions and a new can pack format. We also leveraged sports partnerships such as the Olympic Winter Games to drive transactions. Water grew high single digits, led primarily by the emerging segment, while Juices declined in a challenging industry backdrop.

Turning to sustainability. I'm pleased that our performance continues to be recognized externally. Coca-Cola HBC has been confirmed for the ninth time as the world's most sustainable beverage company in the 2025 Dow Jones Best-in-Class Indices. During the quarter, we also concluded Mission 2025 with strong progress and introduced Mission Refresh, our renewed set of long-term sustainability commitments.

Building on our achievements, Mission Refresh is anchored in 4 flagship commitments: reaching net zero emissions by 2040, achieving a net positive biodiversity impact by 2040, replenishing 100% of the water used in our beverages and in high-risk plants by 2035 and being a neighbor of choice for our communities.

These commitments are underpinned by measurable targets across all 7 pillars of our sustainability strategy: climate, packaging, water, agriculture, nutrition, biodiversity and people and communities. We will continue to track and publish our performance annually to ensure transparency and consistent delivery.

Now, turning to performance by segment. In established, net sales revenue grew by 7.3%, with volumes up 6.7%. Volume grew slightly when excluding the benefit from the additional selling days. When it comes to categories, we achieved good performance from Sparkling, particularly Coke Zero and Sprite as well as Energy and Sports Drinks.

Looking at countries, I'm very pleased with the continued good momentum in Ireland and the improved performance in Switzerland. Revenue per case increased by 0.6%, as positive category mix was partly offset by negative package mix impacted by the timing of Easter and associated promotions. In developing markets, net sales revenue grew by 10.3%. Volume grew by 7.4%, but still grew low single digits when excluding the additional selling days.

When it comes to categories, we saw good performances from Trademark Coke, Sprite, Energy and Sports drinks. Organic net sales revenue per case increased by 2.7%. This was driven by pricing actions, positive category mix and improved package mix, as we drove a 190 basis point improvement in single-serve mix. Finally, in our emerging markets, we delivered net sales revenue growth of 15%. Volume grew by 11.2% or mid-single digits, excluding the additional selling days.

By category, we saw strong performances in Sparkling, Energy and Water. Volumes in both Nigeria and Egypt were particularly strong, as our execution focus helped us build on the momentum from 2025. Revenue per case grew 3.5% organically, benefiting from the impact of pricing throughout the last 12 months, partly offset by negative country mix. We also delivered improvements in package mix with single-serve mix increasing by 160 basis points in the quarter.

And now, looking ahead to the rest of 2026. With regards to CCBA acquisition, we continue to make good progress on the completion process with antitrust clearances in Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana and COMESA, as we continue with the merger clearance process in South Africa and Tanzania. We are also very pleased with our successful bond issuance in March despite the volatile market backdrop, which secures the funding for the EUR 1.4 billion cash consideration of the acquisition.

Overall, we remain on track to complete during the second half of 2026. We are encouraged by the good start we've had to 2026, in line with our plans. 2026 marks 75 years since our business was founded in Nigeria, and we are all very proud of where we are today. 75 years of growth of creating shared value and of continuously raising the bar, 2026 is no exception, and I'm excited for the strong pipeline of initiatives, innovation and partnerships ahead of us. Of course, we are very mindful of the heightened geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty and are monitoring it closely. But we remain confident in our 24/7 portfolio, our bespoke capabilities, our people and the opportunities for growth in our diverse markets, which position us to continue winning in the market.

We have significant experience in navigating periods of volatility. We are well-hedged across our key commodities for 2026, and we are not seeing any material change in consumer behavior across our markets. With this in mind, we are, therefore, reiterating our guidance for 2026 for organic revenue growth of 6% to 7% and organic EBIT growth of 7% to 10%.

Thank you for your attention. And with that, let us now open the floor for your questions.

[Operator Instructions] Your first question comes from the line of Andrea Pistacchi of Bank of America.

So my first question, please, is on revenue per case, which was a little softer this quarter. Now, you called out country mix. You called out the pack mix in established markets, driven by the Easter promo activity. So as these effects normalize, how do you see revenue per case playing out for the rest of the year? Does it improve from the Q1 level? And connected to this, when you leave aside the peculiarities of the Easter timing, how would you characterize the promo environment in your main established markets compared, say, to a year or 2 ago? This is my first question.

Andrea, yes, you mentioned very well a couple of factors that we highlighted, one of them being country mix that played a role. But I would here call out the -- our intentional play as part of our RGM. As you know, every quarter has its own dynamic. And in Q1, we have deliberately focused on -- with more emphasis on volume because one thing was to deliver benefiting from 4 additional selling days, but also to achieve positive volume performance across all 3 segments when you look at it on a like-for-like basis and also taking into account the Easter impact, where we naturally more activate multi-serve packages because of the in-home drinking moments that happen during this period. So this was in line with our expectations, and we do see for the rest of the year that we will be delivering in line with our guidance, both with volume and price mix across all 3 segments.

I really want to highlight this element on the volume, which is really, really important in Q1, but also that is the 12th consecutive quarter of us growing volume. And also, last couple of years, we had very, very healthy price/mix performance. And we are just very mindful in our game plan how we play every quarter. For the rest of the year, we do see that we will have, and we do expect some improvement in the price/mix beyond Q1.

Okay. The second question, and I don't know to what degree you'll be able to talk about this for regulatory reasons. Just on CCBA, if you're able to provide a bit of an update on how CCBA has been performing since you announced the deal. Maybe 2025 numbers that you will have, I imagine, seen at this point, if you could give any update there, what's positive, what's maybe less positive on CCBA performance?

Thanks, Andrea, and I think you already alluded that we will not be able to say much, especially on numbers. However, the process is progressing really well with 4 of those regulatory approvals already happening and 2 more coming up. And we are very excited that everything is going as planned and that sometime during the second half of this year, we can get all the approvals so that we can really start with this really phenomenal opportunity for Hellenic.

In the meantime, our teams are working across all functions on integration planning, fully respecting all the rules that apply during such periods as we are now. But we are doing our homework on all the integration planning with -- across all functions to be really ready for day 1, whenever that will be sometime later in the year. But on the...

Andreas, Anastasis. As Zoran alluded, there's not much we can comment at this stage on details on the performance of the business on '25 or '26, given the fact that the transaction has not been completed, and we have not taken over that operation yet. But we are still remaining very excited about the opportunity and the growth that we expect to get out of this expansion. CCBA covers high-growth markets, and we are very excited about the opportunity that it brings both on demographics and the overall setup that we see in the future.

Your next question comes from the line of Mitch Collett of Deutsche Bank.

If we strip out the additional selling days, organic sales growth this quarter was slightly below your guidance and your algorithm. And there was also a benefit from Easter. So perhaps you gave us part of the answer with your comment a minute ago about price mix, but can you just give us some color on what's going to close the gap for the balance of the year? I'm obviously conscious that Q1 is a relatively small quarter, but what do you expect to drive acceleration throughout the rest of 2026?

Mitch, as reiterating the obvious Q1 smallest quarter and all the game plan really came as we were planning for that quarter. Now, this year is full of lots of exciting things in pipeline. We are in the year, as you know, of the World Cup, where this is going to be the biggest activation that we had so far. And that's going to be a great entry into the strong plans that we have for the summer and for the rest of the year. So marketing calendar with our partners, Coca-Cola Company and Monster primarily, is very strong.

And even in Q1, it was a good preview of the World Cup Trophy Tour, Olympics. We had, as I said, Ramadan activation. And I think this is just a preview of the way we do the events, and we see very good receptiveness from consumers for this type of activations to bring excitement, which eventually are driving the product appeal and transactions.

Then, also, there is a good pipeline of innovations. In Sparkling, there are a number of things, and I'm very, very excited, as well as the whole team, about Coke Zero and overall zero proposition performance. You can read and hear from us about Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine, which is having a very, very strong performance. And we can see that rest of the year, this will be really ramping up.

We had a good start with flavors. I particularly want to call out Sprite because there is a whole toolbox of either new flavor, new campaign, phenomenal assets that we will be activating throughout the year. Adult Sparkling had a very strong performance because we started already with Cherry Pepper, but also there is more to come, both with Schweppes and Kinley. Then, with Monster, you see that innovation continues with a strong pipeline. Same thing with Powerade.

So I can say that calendar, very full activations, innovations, continue our disciplined focus on the execution, leveraging our capabilities, route to market, strong customer partnerships. So all that, in short, gives me confidence that in the remaining 3 quarters, we will be seeing a good performance.

Your next question comes from the line of Simon Hales of Citi.

So my first question was just around Nigeria really, Zoran. I wonder if you could just provide a little bit more color around the volume strength we've continued to see in the first quarter there. Any real reason to believe that we should think about the momentum there sort of starting to slow as we head into the next sort of few quarters and through the back end of the year? Because it just looks quite impressive performance. So a bit more color there to start with, please.

Yes. Thank you, Simon. Look, very pleased with the performance of Nigeria in Q1 with this volume of 14%, which actually is a great continuation of performance over the last couple of years. And we really contribute that to the -- to a number of things that come well together. So strong marketing plans that we have with the Coca-Cola Company, excellent capabilities that we have in the country, where particularly, we are leveraging the data that is serving us in the way how we not only segment, but micro-segment the market both on the consumer and customer front, which is helping us to drive more informed and deliberate approach to every single outlet, and Nigeria is leading the way in this initiative, which we call Ignite Naija and Naya, and Nigerian team also addressed this in the last year's Bitesize event. So that is truly giving results.

We've been also investing in supply chain, really helping that we have sufficient capacity to deliver on all our plans continuously. There is a strong program of RGM between both affordability, which you can imagine is very important in Nigeria, but also on the premiumization front, because you see that Monster and Predator in the country are performing really well as well as Schweppes, which is on a fantastic trajectory of growth.

And I also need to underline the quality of the teams that we have in the country, which are really driving the business in the -- in a very optimistic, bullish, competent way. So in closure, I'm also excited by the prospects and very sure that Nigeria is going to have a strong year this year.

Great. And then my second question was just around the commodities hedging for 2026. Obviously, you mentioned you were well hedged. Can you remind us where you are on your key inputs now for this year and provide any early thoughts on how you're thinking about 2027 and how you're making sure that you can ensure sort of a consistency of supply of those key inputs?

Simon, yes, so first of all, just to give a little bit more color behind COGS. And as you mentioned, the key commodities for 2026, as you hear from Zoran, we are strongly hedged covering about 75% on average, which means that we don't expect any material direct impact for the rest of the year.

Now, there is an element of energy cost, of course, that would be part of production overhead and haulage because of electricity and what we have seen with the volatility around us. And even in this case, in those markets, where we are -- where it's possible, we are also hedged against electricity and utilities, which means the remaining have a very small portion of our overall COGS. So again, nothing material from that perspective.

Now, in terms of other indirect impact when it comes to transportation cost or conversion from suppliers, our existing contracts and long-term relationships partially mitigate the impact. And as you would expect, we have a list of mitigation actions and productivity initiatives in place to navigate with that.

So in summary, what I want to highlight is that for 2026, we still see -- we expect our COGS per case to increase in the low single-digit levels for the year. Now, I believe you also asked for 2027. I think it's a little bit too early to comment about 2027, especially considering the volatile unpredictability around us with the situation in the Middle East, which will actually define the level of -- the duration and the evolution of the situation will define how things will evolve for '27. What I can reiterate is that we'll continue on our disciplined hedging strategy and our supply chain efficiency and productivity plan to ensure that we continue to deliver on our commitments.

Your next question comes from the line of Matt Ford of BNP.

Just 2 for me. The first one is just on Russia. The performance in the quarter, I think you grew low single digit, so kind of excluding the selling days, probably down low to mid-single digit there. So any comment on what you're seeing in the Russian market? Have you seen any deterioration there within that performance? Or is it just comps related? And would you expect that performance to kind of sequentially improve, as we move through the year? So that's the first one on Russia.

And then secondly, just a follow-up, I suppose, on the previous question. Obviously, you're talking to some mitigation to potential COGS inflation and energy cost pressure. Does that include incremental pricing for you? And would that be something you're kind of thinking about, as we move through to the second half of the year? Are you in a position where you would look to take potentially incremental price in some of those markets as we move through the back half?

Matt, look, on Russia, there is not much difference. The consumer backdrop remains fairly challenging, and no major changes in the first quarter, and that business continues, as you know, as a self-funded, self-managed. So really not much change.

On the second one, look, we are really deploying our overall RGM framework, which is planned for the full year, observing and monitoring the situation. And so we are able to respond really in an agile way and dynamically with our pricing if and when needed. However, it's too early to tell. And with all initiatives that Anastasis was mentioning earlier of productivity and continuous work on that front, we are managing the whole P&L, which informs the guidance that we gave.

Anything you want to add?

Yes. Well, I can be a little bit more detailed on the part. I covered the hedging programs. What I want to highlight is around our resilient supply chain, where we have a list of productivity initiatives, not only as a result of the current situation, which is something that we have been delivering over the years, and we continue to do that in 2026 as well with lightweighting initiatives, packaging optimization, energy saving efficiencies in the production lines with improvement on SLE and yields.

And even on the OpEx side, revisiting the route-to-market optimization, warehouse efficiencies and capacity improvements. All these not only to secure profitability as expected, but as we have demonstrated last year to create the space, which is also something we said this year to continue to invest in marketing and digital. So that's something that will still remain high on our agenda and will continue to do so, and therefore, driving such efficiencies. And we have proven in the past that we have navigated in such situations, which makes us very confident we'll do the same again this year.

Your next question comes from the line of Edward Mundy of Jefferies.

So my first question is really around the heightened volatile environment. And, Zoran, when you think about your scenario planning, clearly, there's still a lot of unknowns, but would love you to frame how you're thinking about the current consumer environment today relative to where we were back in 2022 going into that last period of huge inflation. It feels like the consumer is probably a little bit more fatigued after pricing over the last couple of years in consumer goods. But at the same time, pricing is probably going to be a little bit less than what you saw back in '22-'23 given where spot prices are. And then, how do you think about your capabilities and portfolio today to navigate through this volatile environment?

Thank you, Ed. Yes, look, it's a little bit old deja vu, which just reminds us that we've been already dealing with all kinds of situations and going through all kinds of crisis or whatever you call them. But if anything, we've learned a lot all that period, which we navigated and sailed through, I believe, really well, just helped us that we know that this scenario planning, risk planning, which constantly keeps us on the toes so that we can quickly react, really makes a difference.

Now, coming to consumer, we also see that consumers maybe unlike last time, of course, people are observing, but -- and what's going on and following. But there is also a desire from consumers that we see that they engage in the activations of the events. They are very receptive to innovations that we are introducing. So it's also visible that people really want to live and to the extent possible enjoy moments, and we have a portfolio that also helps that, whether that's out-of-home or in-home.

So I -- Ed, when I compare us, I think that every single year, we've been able to challenge ourselves to become better, further strengthening capabilities that we are extremely focused in a disciplined way, continuous investments behind those and behind our people capabilities. Also, digital technology, AI is part of the overall developments so that we are becoming faster and smarter enterprise because all this is equipping our people to react better and faster and in a more informed way. So I feel, and that gives me confidence, that whatever happens, we have tools and mechanisms and portfolio to react in an appropriate and adequate way.

Portfolio, I think we are very lucky to have such a broad and flexible portfolio that gives us the chance to react across the markets in a way and give propositions to various price segments in various drinking moments, various occasions and in line with evolving preferences and consumer needs, as we see in every single local market. So I think lots of learnings that we are applying and that you will see us executing.

My follow-up, if I may, is around the energy category, where there's still incredibly strong growth, and it's clear you're both taking share, but the category itself is quite buoyant. I'd just love a little bit of color as to sort of what's behind it. Is it distribution led? Is it broadening the consumer base? Is it broadening the consumption occasions? What is it that's really underpinning that growth?

Look it's -- there are a number of factors that really come here together. The overall category is clearly developing, and we do see that more people, more consumers are entering the category. When we see that in the last 12 months, 26% of the Energy drinkers have entered the category, then you see now that the profile of consumers gender-wise has equalized. So pretty much it's also 50-50 split of between male and female consumption.

Then, you see also that Energy is entering into more occasions. So beyond active leisure, if you can call it like that, you see now Energy being in -- at work, studying, learning, relaxing, routine moment. So simply, there is expansion. Even with food, you see Monster as well as competitors being more in that occasion. And then, connection with relevant passion points of consumers, with gaming, with football, with music. So -- and then almost to forget the most important, there is a continuously strong pipeline of innovation that is coming up.

I mentioned these 2 that we are just introducing, which, again, are performing really well. And then, you had strong execution, adding more coolers, relevant promotions where consumers can go into GP Motocross, Formula 1 racing that our partners are providing as -- so, Ed, in short, it's many things coming together, which simply continue benefiting from the category growth, but I'm very happy that we are growing faster than category, as we are gaining share across all markets, and we are now -- have overtaken a key competitor in 11 of our markets, and we continue in that direction.

Your next question comes from the line of Sanjeet Aujla of UBS.

A couple from me, please. I'd like to dig into a couple of markets. Firstly, Poland, can you talk through how the market and yourselves have performed during the DRS implementation? And how disruptive has that been, if at all? That's my first question.

Sanjeet, I heard first one on DRS. And what was the second one?

Sorry, second one is on just Italy, Zoran. I think the underlying performance seems to be still weighed by some discontinuation, I think, of some of the Water portfolio. But how are you seeing the underlying momentum in Italy build versus your expectations? And how would you characterize the consumer environment there, please?

Yes. Look, on DRS, first of all, this is a solution that, together with the industry, we are advocating for as and when it's also industry-led as a good systematic solution for the packaging waste solution, so that comes as a part of also our joint efforts. And we've seen last year in Austria start in Poland. We get prepared for these things really well. We know that temporarily, this does have an impact because introduction of the deposit impacts the price that consumers initially need to pay until they learn that they can get their deposit back. But it is out-of-pocket spend.

That's why this can have initially a bit of a slowdown, like we have seen in Austria or we have also seen that this is one of the drivers in Poland. But this is none of our concern, and we know that, that temporary slowdown is for the good reason. So we are fully ready wherever these new systems will come up, the soon is coming up in Greece sometime later this year. So we are ready for that. And also knowing that there is a better and bigger purpose for this for the wider industry.

On Italy, Sanjeet, I am -- I really want to call out that we are really pleased with that performance. Now, overall, market is a bit softer. We would wish that market is a bit stronger, and we do believe that as we enter into the preseason and season, we will see more of market. But in that market, we are now for 10 consecutive months are gaining share. So I'm very pleased that our winning performance is there and seeing that our strategically important Zero Sugar portfolio is performing really well, of which 0.0 is doing really well.

Then, you see also on Sprite performance that I talked earlier about. Then you see excellent energy performance. Then you see also Powerade performance, so -- but what's below the hood is development of our RGM and route to market in the country that's year-on-year very systematic, which makes our organization really strong there. So that gives me confidence that Italy is going to have a good year this year.

Your next question comes from the line of Laurence Whyatt of Barclays.

A couple for me. The first one, just on general consumers. Of course, you mentioned the geopolitical uncertainties at the moment. I was wondering if there's any markets where you're seeing that direct impact on consumers at the moment, whether that's the exit rate or otherwise, any sort of impact from the inflationary environment or uncertainty on consumer spend? That's my first question.

Laurence, look, one thing that we also said in the introductory remarks is that we don't see any significant change what we've been seeing last year. And that also relates to dynamics in a few markets. We said last year that Austria did have -- overall market had challenges. And we've seen also softer Austria in Q1.

We said that last few years because of a number of regulatory taxation, DRS, VAT in Romania, and this is a market where we do see -- we have a watch out even though Romania in Q1 had a really solid performance, but it is one of those markets where we are a bit more cautious.

On the other side, we see very good continuous performance of Ireland. Greece had a good performance. Very pleased about Switzerland bounce back. Then, Czech and Hungary continue really well, Serbia as well. So -- and needless to say that Nigeria and Egypt have been absolutely fantastic with performance. So all in all, to cut a long story short, no material change. And pretty much what we've been seeing last year, this is what we are experiencing also so far this year.

And just also in terms of pricing going into next year -- next quarter, of course, the Easter period will be a bit later. And I'm just wondering to think about your promotional intentions going into next quarter. You're going to have the Easter a little bit in the quarter, but also the start of the World Cup. So I'm just wondering, should we be expecting a materially different pricing environment in this Q2 versus last year?

Look, our promotional plans directly connect with the assets that we will be leveraging FIFA World Cup, where it's not only pricing promotions, but we have a number of value-added consumer promotions with which consumers can win tickets to the World Cup in a number of countries. And also, in Monster equally, there are other value-added promotions. So it's a whole variety of promotions that we are deploying in Q2 as part of our whole overall RGM plan.

And as I called out in my introductory remarks, we -- in a number of countries, we have or are doing price changes and price increases because we always said that's also part of the algorithm and perfectly normal that we are doing that depending on the local circumstances and our local plans. So in short, promotions are remaining an important driver of our volume and revenue generation, and that's what we will be seeing in Q2.

Your next question comes from the line of Charlie Higgs of Rothschild & Co Redburn.

My first one is just on Sparkling flavors, Sprite and Fanta, which picked up quite nicely, particularly around Sprite, where you mentioned some of the innovation coming and as a new global campaign. I guess from Hellenic's point of view, where are the key markets for Sprite? And how do you think about activating it better throughout this year as new flavors and campaigns come online? That's my first one.

Charlie, yes, thanks a lot for this question. So we had very good performance of both Fanta and Sprite. And for both of those, we have strong plans for the year. I particularly highlighted Sprite, where there are so many things that -- I would say it's a part of the reenergizing and reviving Sprite with a great tasting propositions that we have in both sugar and zero sugar variants. Great innovation with Sprite Chill, which is a great tasting lemon mint flavor. Then also, this really good new campaign and basketball assets that -- with which Sprite will be connecting really well. So Sprite is a focus in all our markets. And it's very encouraging to see that it already reacted very well in the Q1.

Now, some of the Sprite is important brand in all -- in many of our markets, but we see that in Nigeria, in Romania, in Poland, Ukraine, I mean, these are some of the very sizable markets that we have. But also, with Fanta, it's a huge brand in a number of countries. There are also exciting innovations that are ahead of us, also gaming, connection with snacking and meals. So you will be seeing a lot on that front.

And then, my follow-up was on Nigeria, where the last few years, there's been some pretty nasty FX devaluation. But actually, in 2026, it looks like you could see perhaps a bit of relief at last. How do you think about FX this year in Nigeria in terms of both revenue per case, but also potentially lifting local profitability?

Yes. Charlie, let me take that one. Yes, you're right, Nigeria, we have seen some significant volatility in the past, and we're very pleased to see that. Actually, starting from '25, we have seen some stability around the currency, which actually makes us feel more confident about how we'll be able to execute the activities in the market.

Look, we've been in Nigeria for 75 years now. So we have also learned that what is today may not be the same throughout the year. The volatility is still something, although as I said, there is more stability from also the activities that take place from the government and the investments that we've seen coming in the market.

Now, in terms of pricing, our pricing actions in Nigeria are set to address the current inflationary pressure, and they're adapted to, as you understand, the competitive environment as well as the overall RGM equation, as Zoran was highlighting, balancing both new packages, affordability and premiumization as well as the volume driver, which is a key driver in the whole RGM equation of the country. So overall, we remain very confident on Nigeria and optimistic on the performance.

Now, in terms of profitability and margins, one would expect that Nigeria is probably on the lower part of the group average on profitability compared to the group average, but we do expect that, that will continue to improve in the midterm, following the things I just mentioned as well as our focus on efficiency, productivity, which is already on a strong ground in Nigeria today.

Your next question comes from the line of Nadine Sarwat of Bernstein.

I wanted to ask on Egypt. I understand that there have been curfews implemented from about the very end of Q1 all the way through April on the back of energy constraints. Obviously, a big market for you guys with lots of volume drivers there. Can you comment on if you are seeing any outcome, any pressures from that in April on your performance? And sort of how are you thinking about Egypt given what is going on with global energy for Q2 and onwards?

Thanks, Nadine. So we -- on this curfew, just to say, you're correct, this has been implemented in the country. And then subsequently, the time extension has happened for the outlets and customers to operate. However, we did not feel the impact of that. Egypt had absolutely great Q1 with strong volume and revenue performance and continued share gains, both in NARTD and Sparkling. And I use the opportunity to also say how over the course of 2 years, we have been continuously narrowing the share gap versus the leader in the country.

And overall, that is a reflection of our strong commitment and investments that we are doing in the country with a very intentional portfolio development and also our capabilities development that we are doing in the country. That's why you see that Sparkling is performing really well, where Coca-Cola brand is leading the growth. I just talked earlier about Sprite that Charlie asked, and Egypt is second most important for -- country for Sprite. Schweppes is the largest global business, and that's in Egypt. And that's really, really strong business.

And then, the moment we came in, we introduced energy brands with Monster and Fury, which are performing really well. And to remind you, one of the things was correction on economics behind water, where we took a little slowdown to be able to then speed up that we are doing now. And that's why you see also Water, which is an important category in Egypt, is doing very well. So Egypt as well as overall Hellenic, we have not been impacted by what's going on at the moment in Middle East, but we remain focused in executing the plan. And I'm equally, as for Nigeria, but also very optimistic and confident about our performance in Egypt for the full year.

Your next question comes from the line of Richard Withagen of Kepler Cheuvreux.

Back on Egypt, but perhaps a bit more longer-term question. I mean, you mentioned your capabilities, execution in Nigeria and so on. Can you compare how that is in Egypt these days? Obviously, a business you've had for a shorter period of time.

Look, that's actually very good what you said, Richard, that the role model of how this development will continue is to go to follow that Nigeria path, which was a journey and is a journey of consistency and discipline in terms of our development in the country irrespective of the fact that sometimes you are faced with some headwinds, but we stay the course. And this is what we will be doing in Egypt.

And I think that in a more compressed time, I think we've done really a lot. And even when there were all kinds of headwinds happening in the last 2, 3 years, we really stayed committed to investing and developing the market. And we are very keen to share that also in our upcoming Bitesize live event that we will have on July 7 in Cairo, as we would like to demonstrate and share what we have been doing over there with our partners Coca-Cola Company and Monster and also what are we doing on the ground and also be able to show and walk the market together.

Great. And then my second question is really on the bond issue. You issued just over EUR 2 billion of bonds, I think, at the end of March for the cash outlay of about EUR 1.4 billion for CCBA later in the year. And you're increasing the guidance a bit on finance costs. So -- I mean, what are the let's say, the shifting elements there? Is the bond issue a bit bigger than you originally anticipated or the cost a bit higher? So some color on that, please.

Yes. Thank you for the question, Richard. Just to remind a little bit everybody that -- because you also mentioned the guidance, just to remind everybody that at the beginning of the year, when we issued our finance guidance of EUR 25 million to EUR 45 million cost for the year, we did not include any CCBA related financing with the exception of the bridge financing, which was already in place, as you understand.

And as you correctly said, we raised a bond of EUR 2.1 billion at the end of March, which I want to highlight here, I'm very pleased with the market reaction and a very strong investor demand, which also made the cost quite attractive despite the current environment that we were also experiencing at that time.

So, as you understand, we had to move in time. I would like to call it just in time as the situation was evolving because we didn't know how the overall crisis would evolve in the future and capture the favorable liquid market conditions ahead of the completion of the CCBA transaction, which we see to be finishing during the second half of the year.

Now, in terms of the value, EUR 1.4 billion is the cash consideration for CCBA. And there is another EUR 700 million, which is connected to our usual refinancing of the maturing bond that we have next year, which is a common practice that we do every year, capturing ahead of time the relevant refinancing. Now, the -- so as a result, that had an upgrade of our finance guidance to the range of EUR 45 million to EUR 65 million, which, of course, includes the cost of the CCBA financing, the cancellation of the current bridge financing facility. And, of course, the usual drivers of the finance cost, deposit interest as well as the extra EUR 700 million.

Now, in terms of the ranges, I would highlight that this is connected to an extent with the timing of the completion of the CCBA transaction. So what do I mean by that? Obviously, the finance cost is given, right, when it comes to the bond issuance, but in the meantime, there is an interest that we have as income until we wait for the final payout of the CCBA transaction. So, as you understand, the sooner this is completed the less this finance income will be. If it is completed later in the year, there will be more finance income, which will balance to that extent. I hope that clears -- yes.

I'd now like to hand the call back to Zoran for closing remarks.

Thank you, operator. Well, I just want to thank everyone for taking the part in today's call and looking forward to catching up with you again soon. Wishing you all a good day. Thank you.

Thank you for attending today's call. You may now disconnect. Goodbye.

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Coca-Cola HBC's conference call for the 2025 full year results. We have with us Zoran Bogdanovic, Chief Executive Officer; Anastasis Stamoulis, Chief Financial Officer; and Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. [Operator Instructions] I must also advise that this conference is being recorded today, 10th of February 2026.

I now pass the floor to one of your speakers, Jemima. Please go ahead. Thank you.

Good morning, and thank you all for joining the call. I'm here with our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. In a moment, Zoran will share the key highlights of 2025. Anastasis will then take you through our financial performance in more detail and discuss the outlook for 2026 before handing back to Zoran, who will discuss the strategic growth areas for the business. We will then open up the floor to questions. We have about an hour for the call today, which should give plenty of time for a good discussion. So please keep to 1 question and 1 follow-up, waiting for us to answer the first question before moving to your follow-up.

Finally, I must remind you that this conference call contains various forward-looking statements. These should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements in our results press release this morning and at the end of our slide deck.

And with that, I will turn the call over to Zoran.

Thank you, Jemima. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the call. 2025 was another strong year for Coca-Cola HBC. We've executed against our strategy and delivered a strong financial performance, all while operating through a mixed market environment and continuing to invest across the business for the long term.

Let me call out key highlights from the year. 2025 marks the fifth year of consistent strong growth and share gains. Both our revenue and EBIT growth was strong and high quality, underpinned by continued volume momentum despite a range of macroeconomic conditions. Importantly, volume growth continues to be led by 2 of our strategic priority categories, Sparkling and Energy. And we continue to win in the market and deliver value to our customers gaining a further 80 basis points of value share in non-alcohol ready-to-drink in 2025.

We also remain committed to investing in the business to unlock long-term growth. Throughout the year, we continued to invest in our 24/7 portfolio, in our bespoke capabilities, in our people and in sustainability, which we truly view as a growth enabler. In the year, we made further good progress in our most material areas: packaging, climate and water. And last, but certainly not least, in October, we took a significant step forward in our growth journey with the agreement to acquire Coca-Cola Beverages Africa, or CCBA.

Disciplined execution of our strategy enabled another year of strong financial performance. Let me share the key highlights before Anastasis goes into more detail shortly. Revenue grew by 8.1% on an organic basis with volume growth of 2.8%. Comparable EBIT was nearly EUR 1.4 billion, up 11.5% organically. We also delivered 60 basis points of EBIT margin improvement leading to strong comparable EPS growth of nearly 20%. Finally, we achieved free cash flow of EUR 700 million, drove a further increase in return on invested capital and increased our dividend.

As you know, in October, we announced the acquisition of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa, the largest Coca-Cola bottler in Africa. This acquisition presents a highly compelling strategic rationale, which at its core is about growth. The acquisition materially enhances our presence in Africa by bringing together 2 leading bottlers in the continent with strong track records of growth and deep commitments to investing in talent and local communities. Together, we will represent 2/3 of Africa's total Coca-Cola system volume.

This combination further diversifies our geographic footprint, increasing our exposure to high-growth markets with compelling demographics, including sizable and growing populations and economies with significant potential to increase per capita consumption. The acquisition is consistent with the pillars of our growth strategy and vision of being the leading 24/7 beverage partner.

CCBA is the leading player in NARTD across its markets with a winning portfolio of over 40 global and local brands, further strengthening our exceptional portfolio. We also see a clear opportunity to leverage our strength of operating in dynamic emerging markets, we can share best practices, apply our best-in-class bespoke capabilities and invest further in CCBA to drive growth. Finally, we expect the acquisition to enhance value for all stakeholders. For shareholders, it is expected to be low single-digit EPS accretive in the first full year following completion, with a clear prospect of creating more shareholder value over the long term.

In terms of progress towards completion, let me outline where we are. On the 19th of January this year, we received approval from Coca-Cola HBC shareholders of the resolutions put forward at the extraordinary general meeting. Our teams continue to work through the customary regulatory filings and anti-trust approvals and preparations for the secondary listing of our shares on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Overall, we remain on track to complete the acquisition by the end of 2026 and are working on integration plans so we can hit the ground running. We look forward to sharing more details on the opportunities ahead for the combined group post completion.

Sustainability remains at the core of our strategy, enabling us to deliver growth while creating value for the communities we serve, our partners and the environment. In 2025, we saw further recognition of our progress, placing us among the leaders of the global beverage industry with top scores across major benchmarks.

Let me share a couple of highlights from 2025. We advanced our circular packaging agenda with the launch of a new collection hub in Nigeria and the expansion of deposit return systems to Austria and Poland. Recently launched systems in Romania, Hungary and Austria achieved average return rate of over 80% in 2025.

Partnerships continue to be a key driver of progress. As I mentioned last summer, together with Carrefour and the Coca-Cola Company, we initiated a sustainable linked business plan with Romania piloting a program that unites suppliers to cut emissions and improve packaging sustainability.

Supporting communities remains a central priority. In 2025, Europe faced severe wildfires and floods. And I'm proud that the Coca-Cola HBC Foundation was able to commit EUR 2.3 million in disaster relief. The group also announced an additional $5 million for the foundation to support communities starting from 2026. Overall, we've made strong progress towards our Mission 2025 goals with many targets reached ahead of schedule. Full results will be published in our 2025 integrated annual report in March along with details on the next phase of our sustainability journey.

With that, let me hand over to Anastasis to take you through the financial results of the year in more detail.

Thank you, Zoran, and good morning, everyone. So let me start with the strong top line performance. 2025 organic revenue growth was 8.1%. We delivered another year of good volume growth, up 2.8%, driven primarily by sparkling and Energy as Zoran has mentioned. I am pleased that all 3 segments achieved volume growth or maintained volumes despite an ongoing challenging backdrop. Organic revenue per case increased by 5.1% and normalization versus previous years as we expected. We continue to implement targeted revenue growth management initiatives while navigating lower levels of inflation across most markets.

Overall, pricing remained the largest driver of revenue per case. However, category mix and package mix were also positive, with continued improvement in single-serve mix, which expanded by 130 basis points in the year and is now 310 basis points higher on a 3-year basis. We achieved another year of double-digit organic EBIT growth with comparable EBIT growing 11.5% to nearly EUR 1.4 billion. Our comparable EBIT margin increased 60 basis points on a reported basis to 11.7% and 40 basis points organically. This marks a record high EBIT margin for our company, which is great to see, having navigated several years of inflation and currency pressures.

Let me break down the drivers of this. We improved gross profit margins by 70 basis points with good topline leverage. Operating costs overall stepped up by 10 basis points in the year. However, breaking this down a bit further, operating expenses, excluding direct marketing, improved by 30 basis points as a percent of revenue.

You may recall that in 2024, we faced headwinds in our operating expense line due to currency devaluation in Egypt, which we cycled this year. However, offsetting this, direct marketing expenses stepped up by 40 basis points as a percent of revenue as we invested in activations across categories, but notably the Share a Coke campaign, the Winter Olympics and the new Finlandia marketing campaign.

Let me now look to the drivers of performance by segment. I'm going to discuss these figures on an organic basis. In the Established segment, revenues grew by 2.3%. Volume was in line with last year, reflecting mixed trends across markets. Sparkling volumes were slightly ahead of last year with high single-digit growth in Coke Zero and mid-single-digit growth in Sprite. Energy continued to grow strongly, up high teens, still declined low single digits, although we delivered mid-single-digit growth in Sports Drinks.

On a country basis, volumes in Italy were slightly positive despite our decision to prioritize profitable revenue growth in water in the second half of the year. Excluding water, volumes in Italy grew low single digits. In Ireland, volumes grew low single digits with consistent growth throughout the year, whereas in Austria, volumes declined in a more challenging environment. Established revenue per case was up 2.3%, driven by pricing as well as positive package and category mix. Established segment comparable EBIT declined 2.8%, primarily due to a step-up in investments, as previously noted.

Turning to the Developing segment. Revenues were up 6.1%. Volumes grew 0.8% with Sparkling volumes slightly higher than last year, driven by Coke Zero and Sprite. Energy saw accelerating momentum with strong double-digit growth. Stills declined high single digits, driven by water and juices despite strong double-digit growth in Sports Drinks.

In terms of country performance, the Czech Republic was a standout performer, growing volumes mid-single digits despite a tough comparative. In Poland, volumes declined for the year, though we saw an improvement in the second half of the year. Developing revenue per case increased by 5.3%, driven by pricing actions taken to manage inflation supported by a favorable category and package mix. Comparable EBIT increased by 5.6% year-on-year with EBIT margin in line with the previous year.

In the Emerging segment, revenue grew by 13.2%, driven by both volume and good price mix. Emerging markets, volume grew 4.4%. Sparkling volumes increased by mid-single digits with mid-single-digit growth in Trademark Coke, Sprite and Adult Sparkling. Energy grew strongly despite cycling tough comparatives driven by affordable brands. Stills volumes grew low single digits, led by water and further supported by very strong growth in Sports Drinks on a small base.

At a country level, the performances of both Nigeria and Egypt have been very strong despite external challenges with volumes growing mid-single digit and low teens, respectively. Emerging segment revenue per case increased 8.5% and moderation compared to previous years, reflecting lower levels of inflation and currency headwinds for Nigeria and Egypt. We benefited from pricing actions as well as from positive category mix. Comparable EBIT grew 23.2%, a strong rebound due to organic growth as well as cycling the impact of the foreign currency remeasurement in Egypt last year.

Moving back to the group P&L. We saw comparable earnings per share grew 19.7% to EUR 2.72. This was supported by the strong EBIT delivery, lower net finance cost than previous year. As mentioned at the first half results, we have seen lower than usual finance cost this year due to several factors. We benefited from lower foreign exchange losses compared to 2024 due to greater currency stability as well as higher finance income in the year. As you will have seen from the guidance, we do expect a more normalized finance cost environment in 2026.

As expected, our comparable tax rate of 27.1% was in line with our guidance range. Our return on invested capital expanded by 100 basis points to 19.4%, driven by higher profit. We have seen very good improvement in ROIC over the last 5 years, and it remains a very important metric for us.

CapEx increased EUR 148 million in the year to EUR 828 million, in line with our plans, as we continue to invest in future growth initiatives, such as production capacity, ongoing automation and supply chain, digital and data solutions and energy-efficient coolers. CapEx as a percent of revenue was 7.1%, up 80 basis points year-on-year, but well within our target range of 6.5% to 7.5%. We delivered free cash flow of EUR 700 million. I'm really pleased that even in a year where CapEx stepped up materially, we have still delivered robust free cash flow.

Our balance sheet remains very strong, and we closed the year with net debt to comparable EBITDA at 0.7x. Clearly, this will increase, as we complete the acquisition of CCBA. However, we expect leverage post completion to remain within our medium-term target range of 1.5 to 2x. Importantly, we do not expect any impact to our credit rating, and we have a strong commitment to sustainably maintaining an investment-grade profile.

Leveraging this strong balance sheet, we have a robust and disciplined capital allocation framework, which remains unchanged. Our top priority is investing in the business organically to drive long-term growth for the company. We pursue a progressive dividend policy and target a 40% to 50% payout ratio. With another year of strong growth in comparable earnings per share, we are recommending a dividend per share of EUR 1.20, an increase of 17% from 2024.

When it comes to strategic M&A, as you know, in 2025, we announced the milestone acquisition of CCBA. The strategic expansion into African markets underpins our focus on driving long-term growth and will enhance value for shareholders. We expect low single-digit EPS accretion in the first full year following completion and more shareholder value in the long term.

Overall, when it comes to our capital allocation in 2025, I'm really pleased that we have delivered a combination of investment in the business, a value-enhancing acquisition, increased shareholder returns as well as a strong improvement in ROIC.

As we look to the rest of 2026, we expect the macroeconomic and geopolitical backdrop to remain challenging with a mixed consumer environment across our markets. However, we have high confidence in our 24/7 portfolio, our bespoke capabilities, the growth opportunities across our diverse markets and most of all in our people. In 2026, we expect to make further progress against our medium-term growth targets with organic revenue growth in our medium-term range of 6% to 7% and organic EBIT growth in the range of 7% to 10%.

Thank you for the attention. Let me pass the call back to Zoran.

Thanks, Anastasis. Well, we are proud of our achievements in 2025. We are really proud of the consistency of that performance over many years now. We have now had 20 consecutive quarters of organic revenue growth despite many challenges along the way. If we look back over the last 5 years, we can see that our growth algorithm is working. We have delivered average organic volume growth of nearly 4%, a revenue growth of 15% and EBIT growth of 14%.

Our diversified country footprint, unique 24/7 brand portfolio, bespoke 4 capabilities and strength of our people have driven that consistent growth. What we've learned across many years operating in a range of markets and conditions is that there is no one size fits all approach. We strike a careful balance to focus on what makes the local market unique, staying relevant and tailoring our approach while aligning with the group strategy, leveraging our global scale, tools and capabilities, particularly with digital and data insights to drive personalized execution. It truly demonstrates the resilience of our business through a range of different macro and consumer backdrops and our ability to deliver results at the group level. This gives me the confidence that we can continue to navigate unpredictable environment going forward and underpins our guidance for 2026 as Anastasis set out.

Let me now take you through some of our biggest potential opportunities across our business for 2026 and beyond. Sparkling continues to be the core driver of our growth, contributing 2/3 of our group revenue. In 2025, we delivered organic volume growth of 2.5%. Coke Zero continued to perform strongly, growing low double digits and Coca-Cola 0.0 grew high teens. Together with the Coca-Cola Company, we executed locally tailored activations at key moments across the year, leveraging relevant passion points and consumption occasions.

In 2025, we also rolled out the Share a Coke campaign with local programs and initiatives tailored to our markets. We successfully executed customer and consumer activations across channels to drive transaction and further strengthen brand equity. We are pleased with the campaign's performance and the positive engagement it generated. We also accelerated growth in Sprite with volumes up mid-single digits, as we continued focusing on the Spicy Meals occasion, and we activated the Turn Up Refreshment campaign over the summer.

Adult Sparkling grew mid-single digits in 2025 with a strong performance from Schweppes in our African markets. We introduced new flavors, and the Flavour of the Quarter activation with promising initial results and plan to roll this out further in 2026. We also continued to roll out Three Cents, our premium mixer brand into more countries. In 2026, we will continue capitalizing on key occasions to create memorable consumption moments, including the Winter Olympics, which just kicked off last week and the upcoming FIFA World Cup.

Energy continued its strong growth trajectory. Volume grew by 28% against tough comparatives, making 2025 the tenth consecutive year of double-digit growth. We also hit a milestone surpassing EUR 1 billion of revenue for the first time with a category now accounting for 9% of our group revenue. All segments contributed to growth, reflecting the strength of our diversified portfolio, which enables us to address varied market demographics and affordability needs.

In Established and Developing, growth was driven by Monster supported by successful innovations such as Rio Punch and the launch of a new Monster drink with Lando Norris. Predator and Fury, our affordable offers in Africa, grew over 40%, supported by football partnerships and marketing activations that truly resonate with local consumers. We are confident we can continue to drive a strong performance in Energy and expect the category to reach a double-digit percentage of our revenues very soon. The category continues to see broad-based consumer demand, and we are excited for another year of innovation and planned partnerships, which we will complement by adding more dedicated coolers across our markets.

Moving on to Coffee. At the start to 2025, we announced we had made a strategic decision with our partners at Costa Coffee to prioritize the out-of-home channel because that is where we see the greatest potential for sustainable, profitable growth. I'm pleased to see that this decision is delivering results. We are seeing strong growth in the out-of-home channel, driven by both Costa and Caffe Vergnano with volumes up 26.5%.

This has been driven by growth in our existing outlets as well as recruiting new high-quality outlets. We remain very positive about the growth potential for our Coffee business. It plays a critical role within our 24/7 portfolio and helps us build stronger customer relationships in the hotels, restaurants and cafes channels. We are building a strong, credible business with unique capabilities and meaningful competitive advantages.

In Stills, volumes declined by 1% as growth in Water and Sports Drinks was offset by juices and Ready-To-Drink tea, where we faced a more challenging market environment. Water volumes grew low single digits, and we remain focused on profitable revenue growth, prioritizing premium waters. Sports Drinks continued its strong momentum with volumes growing low double digits. We launched new flavors of Powerade and leveraged local sports partnerships as well as football activations featuring global ambassadors to drive transactions. In 2025, we also launched Powerade in Romania.

Premium Spirits volumes grew by 12.2% with double-digit growth across all 3 segments and strong growth of Finlandia Vodka, our own brand. The new Finlandia campaign we launched in April 2025 has been positively received, contributing to increased brand awareness and share gains in key markets. Our distribution partnerships with Brown-Forman, Bacardi and Edrington also contributed to growth.

In our Snacks business, 2025 marked the return to full operations of our Bambi plant following the fire in 2024. In October, we also launched Bambi snacks in Nigeria, our first entry into the African continent in this category. We implemented a bespoke plan tailored to the local market and are pleased with the early feedback. Investing in our bespoke capabilities is critical to drive best-in-class growth and allows us to continue to gain share.

I want to call out the specific examples of progress in 2025. Revenue growth management is one of our core capabilities to drive profitable revenue growth. Affordability remained important in 2025, and we increased our focus on entry and smaller packs. Premiumization remains relevant for a large segment of the population, and we focused on expanding multipacks of single serves as well as driving mini-cans in relevant markets. We also continue to leverage our advanced promotion analytics tools, which led us assess the effectiveness of each promotion and make a quicker in-market decisions to drive more value for us and our customers.

Within data, insights and AI, we continued to leverage AI capabilities. Two great examples include our Ignite Naija initiative, where jointly with Coca-Cola Company, we are linking consumer and customer data in Nigeria, which Naya and the Nigerian team shared with you at our Bitesize event last year. Early results indicate that this more sophisticated segmentation approach is translating into higher volume and revenue per case.

We also expanded our segmented execution approach to wholesalers, leveraging shared data and outlet intelligence to provide our wholesale partners in Italy with tailored recommendations relevant to the outlets they serve. In 2026, we will continue to implement more advanced segmented execution across our markets, enhanced by AI and more -- most importantly, tailored to the local market dynamics.

We are increasingly digitizing our route to market. Our dynamic routing tool, which reduced its travel time by 15% is live in 22 markets, freeing up more time for face-to-face customer engagement. We also increased placement of our Always-On connected coolers by 20%. These integrated coolers continuously send data and analytics to our systems, giving our teams immediate insights to improve in-store execution and cooler profitability. Another example is our AI-enabled logistics project, which helps reduce out of stocks by generating automated data-driven fulfillment recommendations. We launched it in Poland in 2025 and have already seen efficiency gains, and plan to scale these to more markets in '26.

At the half year results, I shared with you about our digital transformation and how we've been investing in our digital commerce platforms to serve our customers and consumers who shop online. We are live with Customer Portal, our largest B2B platform, in 22 markets now. Partnering with our customers to drive value underpins everything we do at Coca-Cola HBC. In 2025, our Net Promoter Score increased to 78%, partially reflecting an increase in the number of resolved customer issues within 48 hours to 99%. This disciplined focus helped underpin a sixth year of market share gains in NARTD.

Finally, we couldn't do any of this without talented people. Our latest employee survey results showed overall engagement remained strong at 88%, which reaffirms the strength of our culture and the ongoing focus on high performance, learning and development. In 2025, we scaled the Metaverse learning environment to accelerate capability building for sales teams and improve in-store execution. This is now live in 7 markets with further markets planned for 2026.

To conclude, I'd like to reiterate the key messages I started with. We've had a strong 2025, the fifth year of consistent delivery with further strategic and operational progress and financial results. We've seen another year of growth in volumes, sales, EBIT, EPS and market share. Investing for the future remains critical. And in 2025, we invested across our portfolio, capabilities, people and sustainability initiatives.

Finally, we are very excited about the acquisition of CCBA, a great business with strong brands and the leading market presence across Africa. We have great confidence in the opportunity ahead of us to drive sustainable, profitable growth.

And before I close, I would like to sincerely thank all our colleagues, customers, suppliers and partners for their ongoing efforts and support.

Thank you for your attention. And with that, let us now open the call up to questions.

[Operator Instructions] We will now take the first question from the line of Sanjeet Aujla from UBS.

A couple for me, please. I'd like to dig a little bit deeper into Egypt. By my math, your volumes in Q4 are up around in the low mid-20% range. Can you just talk us through what's really driving that? I appreciate you're lapping some of the impact, but really keen to understand a little bit the impact of your commercial execution there and where your market share is now versus prior to the transaction. That's my first question.

My follow-up is around Established. You've had 2 years of flattish volume growth in Established. How you -- what's embedded in your outlook for 2026? Do you think volumes can get back to growth? And ultimately what's driving that?

Sanjeet, so on Egypt, really, really pleased with that -- with performance that came last year. First of all, just to say that we've seen in Africa, both in Egypt and Nigeria, more stable backdrop and environment. And that really then sets the good platform, where everything that we do there can be more visible.

Coming back to Egypt, what we've seen last year and then Q4 is just part of that is a result of us investing in a committed and disciplined way even while we were facing very strong headwinds over the last several years. Because we were focused from the moment we started 4 years ago to work on the enhancement of our portfolio and then investing in capabilities in a very fast way, leveraging data insights to better inform revenue growth management, route to market changes and enhancements, we've done a very wide investment into upskilling of people in sales and commercial capabilities.

We have changed and improved commercial policies with the way how we work with wholesalers. We have introduced new capacity, which enabled us to fulfill anticipated growing demand that we believe will come and brought new can line. We are just opening another line in like Alexandria. And then, not to forget something that's super important, Coca-Cola Company has really created some and done very strong locally relevant marketing programs in the areas that truly matter to Egyptian consumers. Those relate to music with the outstanding activation and partnership that works extremely well, driving transactions. Also football, which is a big passion point in Egypt with a partnership with a club that has the, by far, largest fan base and also more focus on behind meals.

You know that Egypt is the largest country globally in terms of the Schweppes business, by far, largest in Hellenic. And that's a phenomenal business, which worked so well last year with very intentional programs being -- with which the portfolio was supported. We introduced energy with 2 brands, Monster and Fury, and that also proved to be working really well, tapping into passion points. And all that, again, gets delivered through our evolved and more developed route to market, where we are fully scaling the market, segmenting it and really adjusting how we serve the market from at-home customers as well as to out-of-home customers. So all these blended together is coming very nicely and resulting in a very strong performance.

Yes, in fairness, we also know that we had lower comps, easier comps to cycle. But I think that this performance demonstrates as a good testament to the quality of work that we are doing, not for 1 year, but for many years to come, and I'm confident that Egypt is going to have another strong year in 2026.

Moving on to Established. With a stable volume performance that we saw last year, we are pleased with that performance as this happened in spite of a few challenges. We've seen a couple of countries really making good performance across the year. But I will start with Italy, which finished on moderately positive volume performance, which for us was really important. And we did say that Italy will be positive in 2025.

If you deduct Water, which we intentionally play in -- with selective part of customers and markets, our performance there was on a low single digit. Very encouraging to see sparkling performance of 2.2%, a strong performance of Zeros, excellent performance of new Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine, about which we have very high hopes how it will perform, not only in Italy, but much broader, and then continued strong performance also of Energy. All that resulting in a strong continued market share gains.

So then, we had a consistent performance in Ireland. We've seen a good performance in Greece in the second part of the year, as well as in Switzerland, where we didn't have the best entry into the summer in terms of the weather. And also, we had, like many other CPG players, specific situation related to retail negotiations. And once this was successfully resolved in a win-win way, we have resumed full performance with full listings. And that's why we are very pleased with the second half performance in Switzerland.

One country that consistently has been on a softer side is Austria, where industry also is in decline. We do see lower consumer sentiment, which is below the EU average, but in that circumstances, we see that our team has been gaining share there and has been doing some quality work, which is also reflected in single-serve growth.

So to wrap up, Established, we believe that this performance in '25 present a good base, and we do expect that we will see improvement in that segment in 2026.

We will now take the next question from the line of Andrea Pistacchi from Bank of America.

I want to follow up on established and -- on Established markets, mainly both with the first question and the follow-up. So affordability and consumer sensitivity has been a bit of a headwind in a few of your Established and Developed markets. You just mentioned Austria, I think even Romania and Switzerland. Are you seeing any signs of these pressures easing as we go into 2026? And how are you thinking about pricing and revenue management this year, specifically in these markets?

And the follow-up question is on EBIT in Established. So at group level, you've delivered very strong EBIT, again, mainly driven by Emerging, but EBIT declined a little, I think, in Established markets as you reinvested in the business. Last year, EBIT was flat. So the question is how -- going forward, how are you thinking about balancing reinvestment versus EBIT growth in Established markets? Would you expect profit in Established? Can it return to growth? Are there opportunities for incremental maybe cost savings in Established?

Good morning, Andrea. So I'll start, and then, I'll hand over to Anastasis for your second part of the question. So in Established, firstly, it's not one size fits all. It really varies. And we monitor and measure price sentiment and sensitivity in every single country, also dynamics with a certain level of private labels that can exist across the market. Even though I have to say that in Sparkling and in Energy, this is where private labels have the smallest share.

And even in Sparkling, the private label share is in decline. However, there are a few markets, and you mentioned Romania, even though it's not in the Established, either country where we have seen somewhat better performance of the -- of private label. All of this gets this input into the overall revenue growth management framework, which then on a country level is being designed and which then produces tailored specific things for affordability initiatives as well as premiumization initiatives in every of these markets. So somehow with our reading, we do see an opportunity for positive improvements in 2026.

And second part of the year in those markets have given us that time, and I have to also acknowledge that for Established as well as for all other countries, we have prepared very strong plans with additional investments behind many of the strong programs that are coming up in this year. Summer for us always is the biggest program we have. But also, there is a FIFA World Cup. There are many innovations that are coming up, and we see that being very relevant in the Established segment. And I reiterate that we are positive that we will make an improvement in the Established segment in '26.

Anastasis?

Yes. Thank you, Zoran. Yes, actually, to build on Zoran's point, for 2025, we saw a resilient top line performance with a revenue growth of 2.3%. Let me share a little bit more detail because you touched the profitability of the Established. Actually, the gross profit margin grew in the Established market, but as you rightfully pointed out, you saw pressure on the EBIT margin, which was mainly impacted by a targeted decision to step up our investments in the market, a joint decision with the Coca-Cola Company to accelerate further growth in the segment, and I can go over the big activations of the year, but predominantly it was a Share a Coke campaign with the investment ahead of the Winter Olympics in Italy, which is undergoing now as well. And also cycling extra investments in our people when it comes to field force execution in the market.

So with that in mind, we are very pleased to see that actually, our investment strategy has been paying off. In Italy, as Zoran pointed out, we had a low single-digit volume growth in Sparkling and strong double-digit growth in Energy and share gains in both Sparkling NRTD and Energy. And similar market was Ireland with continued volume growth and share gains across.

So if we look into 2026, what I can say is that we will continue to step up our investments in the market. Zoran already mentioned the FIFA World Cup, we have the Winter Olympics ongoing. We have also step up in the overall Finlandia Investment. But we do expect that all this will translate to positive volume growth that will also flow down the P&L with profitable growth and also margin expansion.

We will now take the next question from the line of Aron Adamski from Goldman Sachs.

Congrats on the results. I have 2 questions. First one is on your innovation pipeline. Can you give us a sense of the scale of the innovation and activation plans that you have for 2026 compared to the previous year? In particular, could you give us some color on the launch pipeline in Energy drinks? Is it comparable to the 3 big launches that you had last year? And perhaps in Sparkling, it would also be great to hear if you're seeing any uplift in Italy's volume during the January month from the Olympics activations? That will be my first question.

Aron, on innovation, innovation pipeline is one of the drivers of our growth, and we are very happy that with both Coca-Cola Company and Monster Energy Company, there is a rich pipeline. So we have a number of innovations lined up for this year. Those will be very exciting flavor innovations, which, in some cases, are also coming with some partnerships. You've seen Lando Norris launch last year, which worked extremely well, and that will continue into this year with also some -- a couple of other innovations that I think will be better that we discuss when they are done.

On Sparkling side, we are very excited with -- we think of it as innovation, which is Coca-Cola Zero Sugar Zero Caffeine with new graphics look and feel with excellent feedback from the market, and we see that performance of this variant within Coca-Cola trademark is igniting very strong growth. We've seen a strong growth last year, and it has been ramping up from quarter-to-quarter. Then, we will have further flavor innovations within our Adults, whether that's Schweppes or Kinley. Also, within Fanta, there are some very interesting things. And you will see some very exciting things in the way the activations will be for the Halloween, which becomes a very important part of Fanta activation.

So I can -- then Powerade will be also coming up with some innovations, especially as you see that now Powerade goes so well together with the Coca-Cola brand in the sports activations, and the exciting and largest ever FIFA World Cup is ahead of us. So I can say, Aron, that we are pleased and confident that we have the right set of innovations. For us, it's very important that those innovations are driving incremental transactions, which are all delivered through very, very strong execution across all the markets.

You asked also about Italy Olympics. Yes. Look, we started activating Olympics already last year in Italy. That gave us a great platform to activate and partner together with customers, driving joint programs. We've been just there last week and seeing excellent activation displays, consumer promotion, visibility, transaction driving mechanism. So I cannot single out how much is specifically because of Olympics, but I can really say that it's a very clear tailwind in what we have seen in Q4 and definitely what we will experience in Q1.

Great. That's very clear. And then my second question is on FX. Given where the current spot rates are, would you expect 2026 to see some transactional FX benefits in Africa? And in the context of easier COGS backdrop that we've seen more recently, how are you thinking about the balance of price with mix and volume following several years of very high pricing that you had in Africa?

Aron, let me take that one. As you have seen, we are providing our guidance. We expect a range of EUR 0 million to EUR 30 million of a headwind from translational effects. Obviously, we don't provide a transactional element, but that's well captured within our overall EBIT guidance.

Yes, you mentioned the spot rates. Obviously, that's one part of the element, but we actually provide a range in the back of trying to assess our experience of a quite unpredictable environment when it comes to FX volatility, especially in the African markets. We are seeing positive signs in both economies, and there is significant inflows of foreign currency in those markets, will make FX availability easier and good signs. But as I said, that's why we provide the range across.

Now, when it comes to balancing the pricing element in Africa, we always follow an adaptive and data-driven pricing strategy in those markets. We've also seen that this year, as we managed to adapt our pricing in relation to a lower inflationary pressure, a lower also FX volatility. We'll continue doing the same next year. And these are, of course, markets that we expect significant volume growth with a balanced pricing to adapt to the local market needs. So as always, nothing new.

We will now take the next question from the line of Matt Ford from BNP Paribas.

So my first question is just on the guidance, I suppose, the 7% to 10% like-for-like EBIT range that you've given for the year. I'd just be interested to just get your kind of take of the moving parts. How -- what do you see going right to get you to that 10% and potentially higher? And potentially, what could go wrong to get you to the lower end of that range? And then, I'll follow up with my next question.

Yes. Matt, yes, you're right. I mean, we're providing a range of 7% to 10% on organic EBIT. I think we need to remind ourselves this comes on the back of a strong EBIT delivery for 2025, which is the third consecutive year of double-digit organic EBIT growth and actually proves our capability to navigate in the environment and still consistently deliver despite what happens.

Now, given the timing of the year, we're a little bit early, and considering that we do believe that the markets will remain in a certain uncertainty on the macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape, we believe that the current range reflects any type of movements on other direction. So, for example, on the lower end, you would expect a worsening of the geopolitical environment, which we have a spillover effect on consumer sentiment and further FX pressures with commodity inflation. While on the upper end, it's built on the back of a stronger momentum across the markets that materialized through the year should deliver also a stronger bottom line.

Okay. Great. And then my follow-up is just on Poland, naturally. I mean, Poland saw sequential improvement in Q4 following a fairly solid Q3. And obviously, in the first half of the year, you were still being impacted by the reintroduction of a competitor in a retailer in Poland. So I just want to get your sense of how much of this Q4 improvement should we see continuing into '26? And how do you think about the outlook for growth in that market in '26 and beyond?

Yes. Thanks, Matt. So let me first say that we are very pleased with the performance of Poland. When you see on a broader horizon of last 4, 5 years, we've done excellent, excellent progress in terms of volume, revenue, profitability as well as significant market share gains. And understandably, with the return of the key competitor into the largest customer, of course, this would have a temporary impact. That's why, when we also see our market share performance, excluding particular customer, we do see that our performance and share gains are there. And we've seen that also in the country. We see a good -- very good performance of Coke Zero, which is up low teens. And also, just to say that in Q4, overall, we gained share in Sparkling.

We also see a very strong performance of Energy, which is driven by Monster. So all in all, we have strong plans, very strong team in Poland and at the back of this very good performance over the last couple of years. And in last year, what we've seen is a return to positive performance in Q3, and then, especially in Q4, we do expect and we will see positive performance and volume growth and revenue growth in Poland also in 2026.

We will now take the next question from the line of Simon Hales from Citi.

So my first question, Zoran, really is around the performance of the Premium Spirits business. It was very strong in the year, Finlandia, performing particularly well in a tough environment for the wider spirits industry. I wonder if you could just talk a little bit more about what's drove -- or driven that relative outperformance versus many of your spirits peers? And how do you think about that Premium Spirits opportunity as we look into 2026? That's my first question.

Thank you, Simon. Look, overall, on like a helicopter review, Premium Spirits plays a strategic role in the overall portfolio, as it also strengthens our customer leverage. It provides a great blend in mixability. And that's one of the reasons why really Premium Spirits portfolio is performing well because it's not stand-alone consumption and activation, but it is also how we blend that in combination with our nonalcohol beverage portfolio, which clearly drives incremental transactions, which benefit both our non-alcohol part of portfolio, but also, of course, it benefits the Premium Spirits part of the portfolio.

Secondly, we also are -- with all the partners, and I'll come back to Finlandia, with all the partners, we are increasing our penetration presence across the outlets, which means that we are increasing distribution and gaining share versus other brand companies in the market. We are also expanding a number of countries, where with Bacardi, we have increased when we started from 2, where we are now to 11 countries. So that scaling is also helping us to drive the business.

And then Finlandia, we always believed that this brand has a great overlap with our territories, having 60% of its global volume across our territories. So when we took it over, we really wanted to give it a fresh kick to refresh the brand, give it more support. And that's why carefully crafted marketing campaign has been launched in April last year. And it was very well received, and it really accompanied great strong execution focus across the countries. So all that blended comes together that we are having another year of very good growth of Premium Spirits, which I want to remind also has a collateral benefit in driving the rest of the portfolio.

Great. That's very clear. And then, my follow-up is really on the finance cost guidance for 2026 of EUR 25 million to EUR 45 million and if you could talk about the build of that. I mean, you obviously started 2025 with pretty high finance cost charge expectations of EUR 40 million to EUR 60 million, and you basically ended the year with almost a 0 finance cost line. Why is it going to be so different in 2026? I mean, how much of the guide that you put out this morning is related to the bridging cost finance for CCBA? How are you thinking about foreign currency losses for this year within that guidance?

Yes. Simon, so yes, I mean, we closed the year with EUR 1.1 million of finance cost, which was lower to our updated guidance and even lower to -- honestly, to our expectations. It was mainly driven by 2 key reasons. First of all, the greater currency stability that we had in the Nigerian naira as well as higher finance income. So if you look into next year and our guidance for next year, which is in the range of EUR 25 million to EUR 45 million, we expect a more normalization when it comes to the relevance of finance cost.

Now -- so first of all, we assume ongoing income from our cash balances in Russia, which is positively contributing to the finance cost, of course. And on the other hand, we factored some higher finance costs in relation to renewing our finance structure, not related to CCBA at this stage. And of course, you rightfully mentioned the bridge financing cost, which is captured within our finance cost for the year, as this is already there. I want to remind us that this guidance does not include anything in relation to new debt for CCBA acquisition. This, of course, will be reflected, and we'll provide further guidance subject to the timing of the completion of the transaction. But I feel overall comfortable with the range that we are providing at this stage of the year and the visibility that we have.

We will now take the next question from the line of Nadine Sarwat from Bernstein.

My question is on CCBA. You announced the deal. It's been a couple of months now. And so I'm curious to hear over that time period, have you learned anything incrementally that you're able to share that makes you incrementally excited or perhaps additional areas where you see opportunities for improvement in the business?

So after the announcement in October, we have immediately proceeded with application across countries where this is necessary to be done to seek the regulatory approvals for the transaction. So we are now in the period where, a, we are not the owner, and we need to wait for those approvals, which we estimate to be obtained by the end of the year latest. So during this period, what we can do, and we started doing, is integration planning. So our functional teams, together with functional teams of CCBA, started working together on the preparations and planning, which then will be executed only once we get all the necessary approvals.

But, to conclude, you said the word excitement. So that's exactly the right word with how we feel about CCBA. And if we felt excited at the day of the announcement, I would say that we just feel more excited now, and we can't wait to get started with these wonderful territories, which offer abundance of opportunities that -- behind which we want to invest to drive growth.

We will now take the next question from the line of David Roux from Morgan Stanley.

Just on -- I've got a question on CCBA, and then, a quick technical follow-up. So you've spoken about the deal accretion in year 1. And then, in your prepared remarks there, you went on to further note you expect it to create shareholder value in the long term. Can you remind us of how this deal will affect your medium-term targets of 6% to 7% organic growth, and then, the 20 to 40 basis points of margin expansion?

And then, just my technical question, on the phasing of organic growth for 2026, there was an extra trading day this past quarter. Can you remind us of the impact across the 2026 quarters from more fewer trading days?

Thank you, David. So on CCBA, very short, as we said last time, we will come back once the transaction is completed and approved. We will come back with our view on the guidance, and we will definitely take you through that. So for that, we simply need to wait that all the necessary things are done until then.

And on the phasing, look, we have in Q1 4 more days, and that was in January. And we have, I think, 4 days -- or 3 days less in Q4. So that's why you will see that in Q1, we will see -- this will be reflected in the performance of Q1 and also somewhat balanced in the Q4. And for that reason, I think that informs how also phasing will be.

I don't know if you want to add anything, Anastasis.

No, I think Zoran captured it well. You should expect to see a bit more -- that extra volume from the first half to flow down from the revenue to the P&L, not of course, to the full extent, as there is a level of investments that we mentioned before, like the Olympics. So a little bit more on the first half of the year. And just to add on the CCBA that we -- our assessment is that, of course, once the company -- the process is completed on a new rebase of margin, we do expect that we will be delivering within a line of our guidance of 20 to 40 basis points.

We will now take the next question from the line of Charlie Higgs from Rothschild & Co.

My first one is on COGS per case inflation, which I think was 3.8% in 2025. I was wondering, Anastasis, if you could give any thoughts for 2026 because European sugar is looking pretty good; PET, likewise; electricity costs are a little bit all over the place. But can you just talk about what you're seeing there? And how hedged you are on key commodities? And then I have a follow-up, please.

Charlie, yes, actually, looking ahead for 2026, we are currently expecting COGS per case to increase in the low single-digit level. There is still some inflationary pressure in commodities like aluminum and PET, while as you rightfully said, there is some moderating trend in sugar. But as you know, we always follow a very robust hedging policy. And our current hedging coverage on key commodities, as we speak, is above 55% with higher coverage in sugar and aluminum, which basically means that any positive -- further positive trends in sugar will not be floating fully in the P&L, as the hedging position covers that. But we remain always focused on this with the hedging strategy and long-term contracts, and we continue to do productivity, and we'll reflect that as the year evolves.

Great. That's very useful. And then, my follow-up is just on some of the leadership changes that are happening at KO. We've got James Quincey's last outing in a couple of hours after an amazing run. We've had in the last few months, a new Head of Europe and a new Head of Africa, and also recently, the company announcing a new Chief Digital Officer. So can you just kind of put all of these leadership changes together and summarize what you think it will mean for Coca-Cola Hellenic?

Charlie, so look, on the -- on that topic, I can say, first of all, we know very well all the leaders who are taking all the new roles. But let me first start to say that we believe that James has done phenomenal steering of the Coca-Cola Company and especially the way James and John and Henrique in their roles have done also gluing and bringing system so much closer together like never before. I really believe it is one of the reasons why the overall Coca-Cola system is working so well together and demonstrating such high performance.

So -- and then preparation of this succession with Henrique, I think it's an exemplary case. We know Henrique really well as another phenomenal leader that we had privilege to have him on our Board, and we still do. But obviously, he will be stepping down given his new role. But we know that gave also the chance to Henrique to see Hellenic from up close. And we know that we share a strong belief in the system, in the business that we are in. And we also shared very bold ambition of how we all should think about future and how much more opportunities there are. And we will do everything from our side to support and work together in a flawless partnership that we have.

And then, also 2 new leaders, both in Europe with Luisa and in Africa with Luis, excellent relationship, super strong leaders, growth mindset, drive to win, and above all, a great sense of partnership, attitude, approach that really inspires to do more better together. So -- I mean, you got me on a question that I could talk so much because we have really huge respect and trust and admiration for these leaders, and we are very privileged that we can work with them.

And not to forget also Sedef, great choice of such experienced business leader to take such an important topic as digital transformation. And we already started, where with Henrique and John, we are having a Global System Digital Council, where now Sedef plays a very important role. So very exciting. And I'm very sorry, I don't have more time because I could really go on. But thanks a lot. I hope I answered your question.

We will now take the next question from the line of Mitch Collett from Deutsche Bank.

You mentioned in the release some new AI capabilities that you've rolled out in 2025. And I think you say that it gives you better volume and also better revenue per case. So can you perhaps give a sense of the quantum of that uplift? And how quickly do you expect to be able to roll that out into other markets? And then, I have a follow-up.

Mitch, sorry, of all the AI because that's another one where I can go for hours, but -- did you ask specifically on the one that we do in Nigeria?

Yes. I think that's the one where you say it gave you volume and revenue uplift.

Yes. Yes, absolutely. No, that's -- you picked a good one because the beauty of that is that, as we and also Coca-Cola Company, we are all stepping up our data analytics and AI. But the beauty of that is when we come together, and this is an example of a case where we combine consumer data and our customer data. Bottom line of that is who shops where. And based on that, we are segmenting so that we can have segmented communication execution based on profiles of consumer segments in which type of outlets. That's the essence of that.

And we've seen based on the pilot, which was just under 4,000 outlets, gave us a very good performance, definitely a better performance in volume and revenue per case than the controlled set of outlets. And for that reason, we are expanding that throughout 2026 by more than tripling number of outlets where we will be spreading this. And more importantly, all the learnings that we get from this are the backbone of how we will be then taking this further to other markets together as a joint system team.

That's great. And then my unrelated follow-up is just going back to the finance charges for this year. I think you say it includes the cost of the bridging financing. Can you just quantify how much that is? Apologies if you gave that earlier and I missed it.

Yes. Mitch, you mean this year, you mean for '26, right? Yes. So in Q2, we expect it to be low single digit.

Millions, low single digits, euro millions.

Yes. Yes, yes. Very low single digit million.

We will now take the next question from the line of Richard Withagen from Kepler Cheuvreux.

First one is on RGM. As inflation normalizes, how should we think about your current RGM strategy? So what's the medium-term algorithm between price, pack architecture, promo intensity and mix to stay in a good balance between the revenue per case growth and volumes?

Richard, thank you for great question. So RGM, when I think of last 5, 6 years with everything we've been going through, I don't know how we would go if we didn't have RGM at the level that we have. This helps us in the situations of extreme conditions like we went with a very high inflation and how RGM carried us through all of that. And mind you, where on top of very strong price/mix, we have been able to deliver constantly positive volume, and that's attributed to the RGM, which takes into account so many things together.

So going forward, in situation of a more stable inflationary environment, both in Europe and in Africa, this is where exactly all 3 drivers that you mentioned play a role. RGM is accounting and using end volume and price and mix. And for us, package mix, category mix are important drivers of how we are driving overall price/mix. We said for the last year that you will see more balanced play between volume and price/mix. And this is what happened. And we also estimate for -- and that's also what we estimate for 2026, where you will see even more balanced ratio between -- a combination between volume and price/mix.

Now, just as the bottom line is that RGM, the core purpose, so it is to drive sustainable revenue and margin through well thought through initiatives that either tackle affordability or premiumization in every single market in their own unique way. And that's why this we call one of our prioritized bespoke capabilities behind which we are constantly investing just to get constantly better, better and raise the bar. I hope I answered your question.

Yes, that's very clear, Zoran. And then my follow-up, maybe more for Anastasis, but -- you made some investments in inventories in the past few years, which I guess makes sense given the volume growth of the business. Now, in 2025, inventories actually declined year-on-year. Did you have any specific initiatives around inventories or around the broader working capital? And what can we expect going forward?

Richard, thank you for the question. First of all, you mentioned the overall working capital cycle, and we are pleased how we are managing this in order to contribute to the overall free cash flow generation. Inventories have always been a focus area together with receivables, where we are making very good progress on actually keeping lowest possible overdues as a percent of receivables. But inventories as well has been a focus and part of the areas that we are working with supply chain to ensure the necessary requirement.

Of course, the priority is about delivering in the market and ensuring availability, and we'll continue to do that. But I want to underline that I'm very pleased with the free cash flow generation as a combination of what has been driven from the profitable growth, the working capital cycle, while we created the space to continue to invest in our CapEx that fuels the future growth. So, yes, good progress there, and we'll continue to focus on this and keeping these levels of free cash flow generation.

We will now take the last question from the line of Laurence Whyatt from Barclays.

Just one for me, please. Just following up on one of the previous questions. I think you mentioned that you're going to have a bit of a more balanced split between volume and price/mix as you look at your guidance this year. Just wondering if you could confirm that that's what I heard, if you're expecting it to be around sort of 50-50 between the 2?

Laurence, yes, you heard well where we say that it's going to be more balanced play between the 2. This really depends on every country. It may be that somewhere it's 50-50, it can be 60-40, it can be 40-60. So this is really hard to predict now. But in our algorithm, and as we think about '26, we do see that end volume and price and mix will play a role. And yes, it's going to -- we see it to be in a more balanced way.

Just to split it up between your 3 divisions, I'm assuming that the majority of the improved volume is coming from the emerging region. Or is there any other areas you would expect a material step up?

Yes, it's logical that more volume to come from the Emerging segment. Absolutely. You're right.

There are no further questions at this time. I would like to hand back over to the speakers for closing remarks.

Well, thank you, operator. And I just want to thank everyone for taking the part in today's call and all the questions and good conversation, and we look forward to speaking with you soon. Thank you very much, and goodbye.

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

Thank you for standing by, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Coca-Cola HBC's Conference Call to discuss the acquisition of CCBA and Third Quarter 2025 Trading Update. [Operator Instructions] I must also advise that this conference is being recorded today, Tuesday, October 21, 2025.

I will now pass the floor to one of your speakers, Jemima Benstead, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the call at short notice. I'm here with our CEO, Zoran Bogdanovic; and our CFO, Anastasis Stamoulis. We have just over an hour for the call today, and following the prepared remarks, we will turn the call over to your questions. Please keep to one question and one follow-up, waiting for us to answer the first question before moving to your follow-up.

I would like to remind you that this conference call contains various forward-looking statements. These should be considered in conjunction with the cautionary statements in our results press release this morning and at the end of our slide deck.

With that, I will turn the call over to Zoran.

Thank you, Jemima. Good morning, everyone, and thank you for joining the call at short notice today. This is a very exciting moment for us at Coca-Cola HBC and a huge milestone in our growth story. Today, I'm delighted to announce the acquisition of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa, or CCBA, the largest Coca-Cola bottler in Africa. CCBA is a fantastic business, and I'm convinced this will be a strong combination.

I want to leave you with 3 headlines before getting into the detail. First, with this acquisition, we are creating the second largest Coca-Cola bottling partner by volume globally, with leading positions across 43 markets in Africa and Europe. Second, we believe this acquisition presents a highly compelling strategic rationale which, at its core, is about growth. CCBA operates across very attractive markets, and we see outstanding potential to further drive long-term growth in Africa and create value for stakeholders, and I'll share more detail a bit later. And third, we will be combining the expertise of 2 leading companies with strong track record of growth and deep commitments to investing in talent and local communities.

And speaking of talent, I want to take this moment to say thank you to all the people involved in getting us to this point. Today's announcement is the culmination of a lot of hard work and commitment of so many passionate people, years of strong committed work focused on driving growth, winning in the market, building strong capabilities and talent pipeline have enabled this milestone, and certainly, strong trusted partnership with the Coca-Cola Company. So truly a big thank you to our teams and the Coca-Cola Company.

I would also like to recognize the outstanding legacy of the Gutsche family and personally thank the whole family for their support and guidance during this time, and a big thank you to the CCBA team for working so collaboratively and diligently ahead of today's announcement.

So let me take a moment to walk you through the agenda of today's call. As you can see, we will mostly focus on the acquisition of CCBA. I will share an overview of CCBA and the strategic rationale of the acquisition, and Anastasis will take you through the financial effects of the acquisition. But firstly, I will touch on our Q3 results, which have also -- which we have also released today.

We have achieved solid top line growth in the third quarter, demonstrating how we continue to deliver quality growth in mixed market conditions. Revenues grew by 5% organically, bringing us to organic revenue growth of 8.1% in the first 9 months of 2025. We saw good volume growth of 1.1% despite a mixed consumer environment and less favorable weather in some markets. Sparkling volumes remained robust, up 0.7%, driven by trademark Coke and Adult Sparkling, and Energy continues to perform very well with volumes up 34.3%.

Organic revenue per case increased 3.8%, driven by both price and mix. We continue to leverage our revenue growth management framework to meet demand for both affordability and premiumization across our markets. I'm pleased that our focused execution through the key summer period enabled us to continue to gain value share in NARTD, increasing 80 basis points year-to-date. We continue to invest in our strategic priorities and our bespoke capabilities to deliver on our growth ambitions.

Throughout the summer, we executed the successful rollout of the Share a Coke campaign across our markets. We dedicated customer and consumer experiences. I'm excited that we have also just launched the campaign in Nigeria this month with an encouraging start. In Energy, we launched a new Monster drink with Lando Norris across 16 markets, which has received very positive initial reactions. And in Coffee, we saw strong growth in the out-of-home channel of 34%, driven by both Costa Coffee and Caffè Vergnano.

Finally, although we expect the broader macroeconomic and geopolitical backdrop to remain uncertain, we have high confidence in our 24/7 portfolio, bespoke capabilities and our people. And today, we are reiterating our guidance for 2025.

So let me move on to the acquisition. Let me start by providing a quick overview of the key terms, but Anastasis will give a bit more detail later on. We have agreed to buy 75% majority stake in CCBA from The Coca-Cola Company and Gutsche Family Investments for a combined $2.6 billion purchase price. We also have a path to full ownership with an option agreement for the remaining 25%.

As a reflection of our commitment to South Africa and the African continent, we are intending to pursue a secondary listing of Coca-Cola HBC on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange after completion, which we are targeting for by the end of 2026. So as I said at the start, we believe this acquisition presents a highly compelling strategic rationale, which, at its core, is about growth. Africa represents a key growth opportunity for our business.

We have a long and successful track record of investment and growth in both Nigeria and Egypt. Today's model will materially enhance our presence in Africa by bringing together 2 leading bottlers in the continent, and together, we will represent 2/3 of Africa's total Coca-Cola system volume.

This combination further diversifies our footprint, increasing our exposure to attractive geographies. We are excited by the growth opportunities across CCBA's markets, which are very compelling demographics, including sizable and growing populations and economies with significant potential to increase per capita consumption.

The acquisition enhances our vision of being the leading 24/7 beverage partner. CCBA is a leading player in NARTD across its markets with a winning portfolio of over 40 global and local brands, further strengthening our exceptional portfolio.

The acquisition also plays to our strength of operating in dynamic emerging markets. It gives us a platform to share best practices, leverage our best-in-class bespoke capabilities and invest further in CCBA to drive growth. I am proud that the acquisition will further strengthen our long-term partnership with the Coca-Cola Company. This important milestone reflects strong mutual trust and shared vision with the Coca-Cola Company.

Finally, the acquisition also enhances value for all stakeholders. For shareholders, it is expected to be low single-digit EPS accretive in the first full year following completion with a clear prospect of creating more shareholder value over the long term. Today's acquisition is fully consistent with the key pillars of our growth strategy. Many of you will be familiar with this, as we first set them out in 2019. Everything we have done to grow and strengthen the business since then has been built on these pillars.

In brief, the acquisition of CCBA will enhance our unique 24/7 portfolio with a strong portfolio of global and local brands, allow us to further develop and deploy our bespoke capabilities to win in the marketplace, fuel growth and enhanced competitiveness as we continue to invest across the combined business, enable us to build the best teams in the industry and cultivate local talent. And importantly, we will continue building our license to operate as a leader in sustainability and drive a positive impact in the communities in which we operate.

Let me take a few moments now to give you an overview of CCBA's business. CCBA is the 8th largest Coca-Cola bottling partner in the world by revenue, and accounts for about 40% of all Coca-Cola beverages sold in Africa by volume. CCBA has a strong track record of performance with net sales revenue in 2024 of more than EUR 3.4 billion and EBIT of EUR 246 million. Growth has been strong with a 3-year volume CAGR of 4.5% and currency-neutral revenue growth of over 12%.

CCBA has a range of markets varying from the more developed, namely South Africa, which accounts for 60% of volume, to markets that are emerging, for example, Ethiopia. These markets have very attractive demographics, both in size of population and average age with low per capita consumption, offering significant upside potential. And the balance of South Africa with steadier growth and significant consumption levels means we will still maintain a diverse mix of markets.

CCBA has a strong portfolio of over 40 global and local brands across categories. Its 2 largest categories are Sparkling Soft Drinks and Water, which account for 81% and 9% of total volumes, respectively. The combination will result in a broader, stronger total portfolio, enhancing our vision of being the leading 24/7 beverage partner. And like Coca-Cola HBC, CCBA holds market-leading positions in NARTD across its markets, including in its 5 biggest territories. So a formidable business across Africa in its own right. But what excites us so much is the huge potential to unlock growth by combining our 2 businesses.

Adding CCBA's 14 markets to our existing operations in Nigeria and Egypt means that combined, we will be the largest Coca-Cola bottler in Africa, serving over 800 million consumers or over 50% of the continent's total population. In volume terms, that's 1.8 billion unit cases in Africa or 2/3 of Africa's total Coca-Cola system volumes, and we will cover 60% of Africa's GDP. This alone would give us huge opportunities for growth. But as we look further into the future, forecast suggests that Africa's population is expected to grow by 2% per annum through to 2050. And GDP per capita is set to grow 4% per annum as well. This gives us access to a large and growing consumer base and economies from which to recruit new consumers. It will underpin our future growth, and it's a proposition that we are very excited about.

As a business, Coca-Cola HBC is already fortunate to have a diversified footprint across established, developing and emerging markets in Europe and Africa. The acquisition of CCBA strengthened their footprint by increasing our exposure to markets with extremely attractive demographics.

Let's take a closer look at the consumer recruitment potential across CCBA's largest markets. In each of these key countries, not only is the population projected to grow steadily, but crucially, it's a predominantly young demographic. In fact, over 60% of the total population is under the age of 30, highlighting a significant opportunity to engage a new generation of consumers.

Added to this, there is a huge potential to grow per capita consumption, 4 out of 5 of CCBA's largest markets currently see Sparkling per capita consumption below Nigeria and well below the current Coca-Cola HBC average. In Nigeria, where per capita consumption is at 72 servings, we have seen growth of nearly 20% in the last 5 years. In close partnership with The Coca-Cola Company, we look to continue CCBA's work of recruiting consumers and building brand equity across its NARTD portfolio.

The combined business brings together 2 companies with strong operational and financial foundations. I won't read out all the figures on this slide. But on a pro forma 2024 basis, the combined business would have generated volumes of 4 billion unit cases, revenues of EUR 14.1 billion and EBIT of EUR 1.4 billion with a healthy margin. One of the reasons we are confident we are the right partners for CCBA is because we have proven our ability to successfully operate and consistently deliver in emerging markets, and Africa is no exception.

Our experience in Nigeria and Egypt has created a deep understanding of how to play to win in the dynamic, fast-changing environment. Our business was born in Nigeria, and in the nearly 75 years since, it has gone from strength to strength. Nigeria now represents 15% of our total volume after delivering 10% compound volume growth and significant market share gains in the last 5 years. That's a result of the consistent investment that we made in the business over the years.

We are also very pleased with the good progress we've made in Egypt. Having acquired the business in 2022, we have integrated it over the last 3 years, and I'm really pleased that we've seen strong market share gains, a testament to the joint investment with the Coca-Cola Company and our teams on the ground.

We have substantially expanded our cooler network in the country and invested in production facilities. We've expanded the portfolio, introducing the Energy category in the market, which has seen phenomenal growth. Importantly, we have also invested in our bespoke capabilities, ramping up the revenue growth management framework, overhauling the route to market and launching new digital and data-driven tools.

Our experience in Egypt has taught us a lot, and we will take these learnings when we start to integrate CCBA as well. And in Egypt, we are now in the position to move to the next phase of growth. With this experience in Nigeria and Egypt, we are uniquely placed to bring our commercial excellence, our best practices, our bespoke capabilities and our high-performance mindset to CCBA's markets. We are also very respectful of CCBA's long history in Africa and the knowledge of their markets. Therefore, we view this as a 2-way opportunity and are excited to share best practices and learn from the team at CCBA as well.

We would also like to invest further in CCBA jointly with The Coca-Cola Company to support long-term growth. You heard us talk many times about our bespoke capabilities, revenue growth management, route to market, customer management, digital commerce, data insights and analytics and talent development. These are critical tools for us to drive sustainable, profitable growth across our markets, increase market share and drive joint value with customers.

Our experience in Nigeria and more recently in Egypt has shown us that it's critical to make sure our bespoke capabilities are purpose built to win in Africa. Nigeria has been where many of our best bespoke capabilities come to life. It's often selected as the test country for pilot projects in areas such as route to market, RGM and data and AI initiatives before being rolled out more widely across the rest of our business.

When it comes to RGM, we make sure that we balance affordable offers such as the returnable glass bottles with premium offerings as well. We make sure we are using the latest data-driven segmentation tools to address customer and consumer needs. With our route to market, we have an omnichannel approach to cover 100% of the market with a sizable skilled sales force, and we have developed locally relevant digital tools, such as our WhatsApp chatbot. All these help us drive high Net Promoter Scores in the market.

And last, but certainly not least, our talent, our unique sales and supply chain academies and our high engagement scores reflect our long-term commitment to developing talent and strengthening capabilities. Driving growth in a responsible way is a core to our approach at Coca-Cola HBC. Much like CCBA, we also believe in creating value and sustainable growth for everyone who touches our business. For us, that starts with our people. We believe in cultivating local talent by accelerating capability development to fuel growth.

We are committed to serving local communities through local production and distribution, and we work locally with suppliers. We can see CCBA has done a lot of work to be a good community partner, and we look forward to working with them on the outstanding progress already made. And I'm proud that Coca-Cola HBC is one of the founding members together with the Coca-Cola Company and CCBA of The Coca-Cola System's Africa Water Stewardship Initiative. The system effort aims to invest nearly $25 million by 2030 to support water solutions across 20 African countries.

And finally, as I said earlier in the presentation, our commitment to Africa, including South Africa, will be underpinned by our decision to seek a secondary listing for Coca-Cola HBC on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

Let me now hand over to Anastasis to talk you through the financials and structure of the acquisition.

Thank you, Zoran, and good morning, everyone. As Zoran mentioned, we have agreed to buy a 75% majority stake in CCBA for a $2.6 billion purchase price. That equates to a $3.4 billion implied equity value for 100%. The acquisition is in 2 parts. The purchase of 41.5% from the Coca-Cola Company for $1.3 billion, and the purchase of 33.5% from GFI for $1.3 billion, comprising USD 308 million in cash and issuance of shares equating to a 5.47% stake in Coca-Cola HBC.

In addition, we have a path to full ownership through an option agreement with The Coca-Cola Company for the remaining 25% of CCBA. We intend to finance the cash consideration of the acquisition through entering into a EUR 1.4 billion bridge facility.

Zoran has set out a strategic rationale and why we think this is such a compelling acquisition to drive long-term growth. I'm also pleased that we expect the acquisition to be low single-digit earnings per share accretive from the first full year following completion, which is expected to be 2027. We expect leverage post completion to be towards the top end of our medium-term target range of 1.2x to 2x net debt to EBITDA. Importantly, we are not expecting any impact to our credit rating, and we have a strong commitment to sustainably maintaining an investment-grade profile.

As a reminder, we currently have invested great ratings with both S&P at BBB+ and Moody's with Baa1 ratings. As always, we will focus on deleveraging and the repayment of our debt obligations. As a combined business, we will continue to focus on free cash flow generation as evidenced through our strong track record in recent years, and our balance sheet remains strong with well-balanced debt maturities that we can repay throughout our cash flow. The acquisition is fully consistent with our capital allocation priorities, which remain unchanged.

Our #1 priority remains investing in the business, and we maintain a progressive dividend policy. And as we demonstrated today, we will pursue strategic acquisitions when they are value enhancing to shareholders. And so with these priorities in mind, and as a consequence of today's announcement, the existing share buyback program, of which we have completed around 60%, will be canceled with immediate effect.

In summary, we believe this is a great deal for all the shareholders, and we look forward to driving continued value creation alongside our partners at the Coca-Cola Company. As Zoran mentioned earlier, this deal has growth longevity for Coca-Cola HBC, is earnings accretive and is consistent with our capital allocation priorities.

Finally, let me share a picture of the shareholder base for both Coca-Cola HBC and CCBA post completion. As already mentioned, GFI will own 5.47% in Coca-Cola HBC, and Kar-Tess Holding and The Coca-Cola Company will continue to own large holdings in Coca-Cola HBC. Meanwhile, CCBA will be owned 75% by Coca-Cola HBC with 25% held by the Coca-Cola Company with a path to full Coca-Cola HBC ownership post completion. Full details on this are in our press release.

Thank you very much. Now, let me hand back to Zoran to summarize.

Thank you, Anastasis, and thank you all for joining us today to hear about what we believe is a fantastic development for Coca-Cola HBC. CCBA is a great business with strong brands and leading market presence across Africa. This acquisition will materially enhance our presence in Africa and its exciting growth market and allow us to leverage our experience in emerging markets and our bespoke capabilities. We are very excited about the combination, and we have great confidence in the opportunity ahead of us to drive sustainable profitable growth.

With that, let me hand back to the operator to start the Q&A.

[Operator Instructions] Your first question comes from the line of Laurence Whyatt of Barclays.

A couple for me. I'll start with the first one. When you've given us your estimate of low single-digit EPS accretion in the first year of ownership, what have you assumed there in terms of cost synergies that you expect to gain from this transaction? And do you think there are going to be any costs associated with getting those synergies? That's my first question.

Laurence, this is Anastasis. So let me take this first one. And let me also reiterate how excited we are about this strategic opportunity for further growth expansion, which is actually, as we have outlined, the main driver of the acquisition, which is top line growth. Obviously, in CCH, we have a history and a culture of driving efficiencies and looking through our processes, especially in supply chain, production and logistics, and we look to identify opportunities to optimize costs. So there is a certain element of that captured in our expectations. But let me reiterate that it's a top line growth rather than cost synergies that are the key driver of this acquisition.

Okay. And then secondly, with regard to the put and call option, I was wondering if you could just run us through how that's going to work. Are there any hurdles that need to be hit? Is there an established sort of valuation principle around those options? Any just further color you can give us on the put and call options would be very helpful.

Yes. Look, there is actually no restrictions or no kind of clear like targets or requirements for them to be met. It's mostly in our decision that with this phased approach, it allows us to have a more effective liquidity management, and it will also allow us to have more time as we gain more opportunity to learn about CCBA in the market and work, of course, closely with the Coca-Cola Company in order to have a smooth handover to the full ownership and transition in the business.

Could you tell us is there any sort of established valuation principles around those options? Or is that going to be done at the time that they're exercised?

No, no, there is no such a valuation principle.

Question comes from the line of Sanjeet Aujla of UBS.

Zoran and Anastasis, congratulations on this. A couple of questions from me, please. Firstly, a lot of emphasis around growth surrounding this deal. I appreciate CCBA has been growing. I think the volume is mid-single-digit, organic sales around low double digit. But is the opportunity to accelerate that and invest upfront to accelerate that pace of growth or to sustain that sort of growth? I'm just trying to understand a little bit better, what do you think is a more sustainable growth trajectory for the asset you're requiring? That's my first question.

Sanjeet, thank you. Look, this is about growth and driving growth. So I think you have seen that our approach is when we believe in something very strong like we do in this, then we do all the necessary things, and that can include also front-loading our investment to drive that growth and to build all the necessary fundamentals where we see that such need to be either built or further strengthened. And by that, I mean, immediately the assessment of our critical growth capabilities and to see how we can further support. And those kind of things usually mean that we invest in advance, whether that's in the teams, their expertise, knowledge, systems, tools. And we are very convinced that, that is always money very well spent. So that's an important part behind the way how we see igniting long-term growth there.

Got it. And my follow-up question, just looking at the -- some of the financials you provided, I see CCBA's EBIT margin is around 7.5% in 2024. I think a number of years ago, the business was delivering margins maybe closer to CCH levels. So I appreciate your comments about investing upfront, but I guess, over a medium term, let's say, 3, 5 years' time horizon, is it conceivable for those margins to perhaps get back up close to where CCH is operating? Or do you think with a longer duration investment horizon?

Yes, absolutely. We do see the opportunity to drive margin expansion in the medium to long term. But as Zoran was highlighting, this will come mainly from the top line growth of those markets. But clearly, we will also see any operational efficiencies, especially when it comes with our investments, as Zoran was highlighting in production efficiency and digital.

Now, let's not forget, as you said, that CCBA is already a profitable business. The line was not very good. So if the question was also coming from a little bit of the margin development over the last years, if I got it right, let's not forget that through this time, the last time they came in public with expectations, we were in the COVID period, then there were significant global inflationary pressure in commodities, and then, they faced certain currency volatility, right? So -- but from the exercise we have done and the view that we have is that we believe that we can continue to see a recovery of the margins going forward.

Question comes from the line of Nadine Sarwat of Bernstein.

One for me. It's great to hear all of the enthusiasm regarding this deal. And clearly, there are a lot of opportunities that you've highlighted, both top line, but also profitability. Maybe we could touch on maybe some of the challenges that you might anticipate facing prior to the deal completing, but also post the deal completing. What are you anticipating some of those challenges might be? And how do you plan on tackling those particular challenges? What's your approach?

Thank you, Nadine. Look, first of all, it is a strong confidence. And as you said rightly, it's excitement that we feel because this is truly something transformational for our growth and future. But of course, emerging markets do bring a certain level of risks. However, we believe and see from our experience that we have already from Africa, both in Nigeria and Egypt, is that this is much more outweighed with the opportunities that these markets bring.

In my introductory remarks, I shared things about demographic, size, per capita, overall economic development opportunity that exists across these markets. So those opportunities give us huge confidence that with the experience that we have, with the knowledge and experience how we operate and play and our play to win attitude in these markets, we really think that we can navigate through all types of situations.

And based on Nigeria and Egypt, just to mention those 2, in Africa, we've seen all kinds of situations. And with strong people on the ground, that's the biggest guarantee, how to act with agility and speed and do the right things for the business. And we are always mindful of not only of the short term, but always building fundamentally strong business for the long term. And we do have the very robust planning, scenario planning, contingency practices that we are all the time exercising for all of our markets, but even more to the emerging. So with all this, I just want to say that, yes, clearly, there can be risks, but we are much more guided by the opportunities that this presents to us.

Your next question comes from the line of Andrea Pistacchi of Bank of America.

Yes. Congratulations. My first question is on South Africa, which is the largest market of the business. Per capita in Sparkling is, I think, quite high already in South Africa. So where do you see the main growth opportunities there? I mean, in the other markets, Ethiopia, et cetera, it's very clear, low per caps, excellent demographics, et cetera. But what do you see as a growth driver in South Africa, please?

And the second question, when you -- as you combine the 2 businesses, are you able to give any perspective on how your -- the growth algorithm of the company changes, if at all, 6% to 8% top line whether you think you'll be able to grow slightly faster and maybe a slightly different mix between volume and price mix.

Andrea, so on South Africa, yes, indeed, very exciting and critical market for CCBA. We have seen that there is a strong business there. But we believe that there are a number of opportunities. One is the overall increasing the pie, if you will. And then for sure, there could be opportunity in further portfolio fine-tuning and development that we would explore. On top of that comes the revenue growth management, which we are extremely passionate about when we know how much it means in converting the potentiality of the portfolio into profitable revenue growth.

So what we will do, and we see opportunity in assessing the overall OBPC, where we clearly want to understand what are the key occasions, which brands are tapping there, with which packs, at which price and at those channels. So we would be doing that to also understand how further we can support and develop all the affordability options with possibly relevant entry packs, which clearly play a role in every market, and South Africa is no exception.

And then also, we do see opportunities with premiumization offerings. So we are very excited with South Africa. First of all, it's a great business already. And we are just excited how to support and invest behind this business to take it further, and we are confident that we can do that.

On the next one, I can just say that, look, Andrea, we are just at the point of announcing, and we will be coming back in due course where we will be sharing more of how we think about the combined entity or combined business, and we will be very happy to share those.

Can I just add a quick thing? I may have missed it, but did you give us a coupon at which you're financing the deal, the bridge loan? Or could you, please?

Yes. I mean, look, the financing of the deal, as you have seen, is on -- structured on issuing of bonds. Well, you would expect that the cost of finance should be in -- within the prevailing market rates, the CCH prevailing market rates, so yes.

Next question comes from the line of Aron Adamski of Goldman Sachs.

Zoran, Anastasis, Jemima, congratulations on the deal. My first question is on coolers. I suppose that having a wide cooler footprint is critical to succeeding CCBA geographies. And when you look at CCBA's footprint and penetration of the cold drink equipment, do you think it's a well-invested business on that front? Or after the completion, should we expect the CapEx to step up?

Aron, thank you. So this whole case has been built on how to drive growth where commercial strategy and commercial pillars play a significant role. Next to the revenue growth management I talked earlier, this is then backed up and executed with a very robust comprehensive route to market. And within that is also a cooler strategy. We've seen so far a solid cooler positioning across the markets. However, we do see more opportunities, and cooler, overall, strategy for us is Hellenic is one of those that really matters for all our categories. So that is part of our overall plan for sure.

Aron, to come to your CapEx question -- yes, to come to your CapEx question, Aron, as you understand, as you rightly pointed out, that we would expect that we would invest ahead of the curve in CapEx and OpEx at the first 2 years in order to support the growth that has been as Zoran was highlighting. And that CapEx investment definitely includes cooler placements in line with the route to market opportunities.

As I said earlier, production capacity to ensure the growth and modernization of our facilities and digital tools and technology to support the overall growth. But I want to reiterate also that we have a good -- we have a very good record on having a playbook actually that delivers successfully implementing investments in the markets over the years while delivering profitable growth, free cash flow generation and a very strong balance sheet while gaining share. So -- and that's what we plan to do here as well.

Very clear. And then my second question is on transactional FX. It has definitely been a key topic in your African markets over the past few years. So I was wondering if you can give us a sense of what percentage of CCBA's cost of goods sold are denominated in hard currencies. Does CCBA currently hedge that exposure? Or is that an opportunity for you? And just going forward, is there an opportunity -- do you see any opportunities to reduce the exposure to hard currencies in Africa as a whole going forward?

Look, we're not going to go through that details for the call. I'm sure that you can connect with Jemima and the team to get any support you need. But obviously, I want to reiterate, as Zoran said, we have a big experience in operating in Africa. I have to say that Nigeria and Egypt has given us quite a big level of developments with currency volatilities and inflationary pressure. And I think we have demonstrated that we have navigated very effectively in these markets, and our learnings and our experience will be put in place as well in the new markets.

Next question comes from the line of Simon Hales of Citi.

Congratulations for finally getting this deal done, guys. I've got 2 questions, please. I mean, firstly, Anastasis, can you just talk a little bit about the cost of capital you're assuming on this transaction and how we should think about perhaps the payback period or the time frame for that to covering your cost of capital? That's the first question.

Yes. Simon, first of all, again, I have to repeat that the rationale of this acquisition is on long-term growth opportunity that we get from CCBA. And you have seen that over the year, we have very good progress on ROIC as a group, even we reached 18.3% last year. However, we have always said in many calls that for the right strategic acquisition, and the case of CCBA is exactly that. We are prepared to see our ROIC progress slow down in the short term.

At group level, we expect to continue to generate ROIC above our cost of capital post-acquisition of CCBA. And of course, I will be working through the plans now with The Coca-Cola Company to deploy more in the market. We will come back, and we will clarify more about the specifics on the CCBA ROIC development. So -- but let me reiterate that again, this is about the long-term opportunity that Africa has, and we're very excited about it.

Got it. And then secondly, just on the profitability of CCBA. Obviously, you've disclosed the EBIT and EBITDA numbers going back over the last sort of 3 years. Some of those numbers look quite volatile, and I think EBITDA over a 3-year period has been broadly flat. Is there anything particular we should take into account when looking at that recent historical trajectory?

And then second to that, when we think about the translational FX impact that we've seen across CCBA over the last sort of few years, how much of a headwind on average has translational FX been to you?

I think that the second part of the question, I'll repeat what I said earlier that from what you've seen over the last years, there was a certain negative impact from FX volatility that resulted to other remeasurements or pressure on both transactional and translation to those markets. And that has been the main driver, considering also, as I said before, the significant inflationary pressure on key commodities following the developments of what we've seen globally, right, over the years.

But what we can say now is to the extent that we can disclose that since we are not in control yet of the business is that they're on a good recovery trajectory. And as I said before, in our assessment, in combination with the top line growth and the RGM exercises we are seeing, we believe that they will get back on a good track to recover margins in those markets.

Next question comes from the line of Fintan Ryan of Goodbody.

Two questions from me, please. Firstly, on a slightly different note, within your sort of -- within the core CCH business, organic sales growth slowed to 5% in the quarter. I appreciate that a quarter is a short time frame, there's a few dynamics in specific markets. But could you give us a sense of what the run rate trajectory of that was towards the end of the quarter? And on a stand-alone basis, could you -- would you still be hopeful to see an acceleration towards the 6% to 7% current midterm guidance for FY '26 on top line? That's the first question.

Fintan, yes, on the third quarter, as I said in the intro, we are pleased with that quarter, especially as after first 9 months brings us to 8.1% of the organic revenue growth. And especially important is that we are consistently delivering that with a positive volume. Yes, with, of course, price mix and continuously gaining share.

As we highlighted, Q3 has been characterized with not so good weather in a number of markets, and that left some impact. And also, we've seen a mixed bag of some more resilient markets, some of them coming back actually to the positive performance, like, for example, Poland and Switzerland.

And then you see some of the more stable backdrops for Nigeria and Egypt, where we are continuously performing well, very pleased with that. Also, we see good Ireland, stable Hungary. And then, look, there are some couple of challenging markets, Romania, which feels the effect that last several years, we've had taxation and regulatory changes continuously. And somehow that cumulatively does have an impact on the consumer. We've seen also, unfortunately, some of the in-market turmoil in Serbia, which also has an effect on the consumer.

So this is just to give you a little bit of the flavor as we've been this time more short on the Q3, but to reiterate the confidence that we will be having the higher growth rate in Q4 than Q3. To remind you that Q4 is the quarter with the most favorable cycling rate, we do see also technically even one more selling day. We see also that Share a Coke in Nigeria, which is an important campaign in an important big country in -- when it's the season there. And also last, but not least, is also the revival and now fully operational Bambi biscuits business, which is coming back on stream.

So we feel confident to be where we guided for. And then I would just shortly, Fintan, reiterate that we do see our midterm guidance of 6% to 7% as being valid and what we will be really shooting for, and we believe that we can and we will do that.

Great. Very clear. And just a follow-up. Could you give us a sense of what -- within the CCBA business, could you give a sense of what the current capacity utilization is, the assets -- production assets and I guess how that benchmarks versus Nigeria and Egypt? I think on the slide, you also mentioned that you've got 100% channel coverage within the Nigerian market, obviously, that's your best in class, where does that metric sit for some of the key CCBA markets?

So look, we wouldn't go into any specifics or details now on CCBA. We will come in due course where we will look -- present how we think about the combined business. But we know that at the moment, business, I can just say that there are no constraints for the business there. And for the performance that is delivering, we have seen that there are a couple of capacity expansions happening this year. So we have seen that the business there is actually well -- having initiatives, which are supporting well the capacity expansion to be able to deliver the growth rates that, that business has -- that business is shooting for. So we don't see any issue there.

Your next question comes from the line of Charlie Higgs of Rothschild.

Zoran, Anastasis, congratulations. I just had a question on management intention with this deal because if I think back over the past few years, what CCH had to dealt with, it's probably the most of any bottler I've seen with currency devaluation, conflict, commodity inflation, the fire at Bambi. So how do you think about successfully integrating CCBA in the context of what historically was quite a volatile world? And then I have a follow-up, please.

Charlie, thanks for this question. That gives me the opportunity to say that when we make a decision like this, obviously, it has to be based also on our own true assessment of the in-house capability, talent and people we have. And that's one of the driving forces why I believe that the time was great and right for us to step into this new opportunity. I'm very proud of the bench strength that we have.

And for everything that you said, what we've been dealing through, is a great testament to the skills and expertise and knowledge of our teams that have been dealing with both locally on the ground, which I emphasize as a #1 priority, but also on a regional and group level, which provide critical support for our teams on the ground. So we feel we are well equipped with this.

But also, I would add that we see lots of talented, capable people in CCBA, and we see that it's just a matter of a good blend. And our intention is to support local talent, and we will do every effort and investment to support people across countries in CCBA. And we are all excited to learn the teams and people there to greater extent and incorporate them in all our talent management and development programs. And I'm sure they will bring a breadth of experience and knowledge from their markets, and we will primarily leverage and capitalize on that.

And then my follow-up is just on kind of the way that you report at the moment, you have Egypt and Nigeria in your emerging segment, should we expect that going forward you perhaps dedicate a segment purely towards Africa to help try and bring in more focus and accelerate the growth there?

Charlie, yes, as you can understand, we are still working on the best approach on how this will be the most appropriate way to see our segmental reporting and, of course, being compliant with our financial reporting requirements. So bear with us a little bit, and we will communicate in due course once we're closer to completion on the best way to see this new structure.

Next question comes from the line of David Roux of Morgan Stanley.

Congratulations on the deal. And as a South African, I certainly look forward to a site visit there at some stage to see the assets. My question is just on the production footprints of the CCBA portfolio. How much of production is local for local? Or is there a large component that is produced in South Africa for exports to other African countries?

David, actually, CCBA network is quite well widespread across countries. And big majority of everything that's sold across the countries is sourced and produced within respective countries.

Your next question comes from the line of Mitch Collett of Deutsche Bank.

Zoran, Anastasis, congratulations on the transaction. And I know you've been asked this a few times, but maybe I'll try and ask it a slightly different way. What would be the appropriate organic growth algorithm to expect for the acquired business? And would it be safe to assume that it's above your current 6% to 7% medium-term ambition?

Given what you said about the scope to improve profitability, does it do anything to your 20 to 40 basis points of annual margin expansion? I mean, are there any structural reasons why those markets -- why the acquired markets would be less profitable?

And then thirdly, you've said it takes you towards the top end of your target gearing range, given your growth algorithm and the cash generation, what is the cadence of de-gearing you expect to see going forward?

Mitch, thank you. So look, while we said that we will come back in due course where we will be more specific how we see the growth algorithm, but obviously, we are talking here about more growth opportunities and to drive more growth. So to which extent and how that will be translated in the algorithm, we will come back on that. But for sure, it just solidifies and strengthens the guidance that we have, and then, we will see what potentially this can imply more going forward.

However, I would rather emphasize the opportunity and to say that with that per capita situation that we see currently, that's a fertile ground to recruit more consumers with a relevant portfolio with really working through sound revenue growth management, which really takes into account affordability needs because realistically, we know that all these countries and markets really need affordability propositions. And it's up to us together with CCBA team to further develop and offer those things that will really ignite more recruitment, driving more transactions.

Particularly, we see that there is a quite relevant segment across countries, where more premium propositions also play a role. I'm very confident that also with our data insights analytics, we will be able to work through the data to uncover more opportunities based on which we will design the plans. So I'm just saying all these things, Mitch, just to reiterate more, how, in substance, we are looking about the construct of that growth, for which specifics, we will come back later because we believe that at this stage will be just too early. But let me close with strong optimism and confidence that I believe that this offers for more growth.

Anastasis?

Yes. Mitch, let me start a little bit now on the debt structure and the leverage impact. But as we have clearly highlighted that this is an acquisition that is structured in a way that the funding is designed in a way to mitigate any potential deterioration to our credit metrics and ratings. And we do expect that our current credit worthiness to remain as is.

As you have seen that the funding is quite balanced with both the use of debt and using also of shares with a very clear focus to maintain the acceptable leverage performance that we have. And I will share a bit more in the second. And of course, the work with the rating agencies that has taken place has actually performed several stress tests of all scenarios you can imagine to make sure that we maintain a very good credit level.

Now, with that, the acquisition is expected to bring our net debt to EBITDA ratio close to our top end range of the 1.5 to 2x, as I said earlier. And if you are considering the deleveraging, we would expect that to start from 2027 onwards, as we progress following the acquisition.

Just to add one more thing, Mitch. For us, it goes without saying in the algorithm of driving growth, it's also very important the marketing and then consequential market execution that we do with Coca-Cola Company. And we've seen some very strong relevant passion point activations that in these type of markets really work very well, and that gives us also a good confidence that we will have a great platform that we will then activate with our customers and across the trade. So I just didn't want to miss the opportunity to emphasize that. Thank you, Mitch.

Yes, very helpful. And just on the margin piece, maybe not a lot you can say, but does it change your 20 to 40 basis point margin aspiration? Is there any reason, any structural reason why CCBA's markets would be less profitable than your existing CCH markets?

Look, I think as you can understand, Mitch, when you compare it to what we've seen in '24 to today, you would expect that the average margins are lower to the overall CCH rate. But what I can reiterate is that we expect that we will continue to be able as a group to drive margin expansion to what we have provided as guidance already. So that will not slow down our opportunity to grow margins.

Next question comes from the line of Philip Spain of JPMorgan.

I just had a follow-up around the organic growth a little bit because in -- you've clearly shown in Nigeria, your ability to leverage very strong data and analytics capabilities to drive your volume growth as well as your strong RGM management. And you've obviously referenced that as being something you look to bring into CCBA to drive that top line opportunity. But just wanted to get a sense of how long you think it would take to roll those systems into CCBA, if it's something you do quickly across all the markets or if it's something you have to do market by market over time, just to get a sense of when we can expect that benefit to start to accrue?

Thank you, Philip. Look, I first of all want to acknowledge that CCBA already has fairly solid systems and the tools that they are using, and so it will be for us to assess, okay, where and how we build from that base. So for sure, from the experience of Egypt, we've seen that implementing our revenue growth management framework, additionally upskilling, training people to really work with it gave us the excellent impact and effect.

And from whenever we will be allowed to do so, we really plan to help and support local teams with the knowledge and experience from our centers of expertise that we have across the group. That's exactly the template that we have done also in Nigeria that you referred to, as I mentioned, same was in Egypt. And so we will apply the same winning proven playbook, which always leverages the talent capability in the local countries, just additionally supported from the center as a capability building.

That concludes our question-and-answer session. I'd now like to hand the call back to Zoran for final remarks.

Thank you, operator, and I'd like to thank everyone for taking part in today's call at a short notice. Let me just briefly conclude. We are very excited about the combination, and we have a great confidence in the opportunity ahead of us to drive sustainable, profitable growth. Thank you very much, and wish you all a great day. Goodbye.

Thank you for attending today's call, you may now disconnect. Goodbye.