Strategy Discussion-Cott Corporation

Date: February 16, 2012

Re: Cott Corporation’s Expansion into the Brand Name Battlefield

Executive Brief

Because of our current position in the CSD market where we have established ourselves as the leading manufacturer of retail and private label CSD’s, I feel that now is the time to pursue a more aggressive growth strategy into the revenue territory of the three majors. This will be accomplished by creating a new position in the market between the existing major brands and private label brands. The position will be established by a substantial advertising campaign that is tied to regional roll-out with the goal of national coverage by year’s end and a pricing position that puts our product between the two existing categories. The cost of the advertising campaign will be off-set by the increase in price so that the two complement each other. Seed money for the advertising campaign will stem from capital investment into the roll-out of the product. Because the roll-out is regional, if the strategy doesn’t meet expectation, then the position can be replaced by existing growth strategies, i.e., acquisition and international growth.

We are positioned to grow because of the three things in our favor that equate to opportunity:

1. Low cost production and distribution network.

a. The infrastructure is already there for us. We have a national distribution network that is comprised of over 200 brands produced in 20 manufacturing facilities.

b. Our products are in retail outlets-one of the biggest barriers to entry in the market considering the staunch competitive pressure from the majors.

2. We are growing as the business. Our methods are working. We already make product that is widely consumed throughout the retail channels. There will be no need for product development.

3. Macro-Environment-Economic pressures will continue to factor in on purchasing behavior as there is a widening gap in price point between the major CSD brands and...