Vestavia resident named to VP role at Coca-Cola UNITED
A Vestavia Hills resident has taken on additional responsibility and stepped into a key role at Birmingham-based Coca-Cola UNITED. Hafiz Chandiwala was recently named the executive vice president and chief administrative officer.
Coca-Cola UNITED is an independent bottling arm of the greater Coca-Cola brand, Chandiwala said, and has a reach that spans throughout seven states in the Southeast.
In the past, Chandiwala has served as chief financial officer for the company, but after the firm greatly expanded starting in 2014, he said he needed to take on a greater role.
“In that time we have grown, and my responsibilities have grown to include procurement and other financial and administrative aspects,” he said.
In the last four years, Coca-Cola UNITED has grown from having 2,500 employees to more than 9,500, and now has 54 plants under its umbrella, including the recently-acquired plant in Scottsboro.
Coca-Cola UNITED, Chandiwala explained, receives product concentrates from the main Coca-Cola production system, then manufactures a variety of products and moves them to their final retail destination.
“A big part of what we do is certainly managing the customer relationship side and execution, but also a big part of what we do as a local bottler is reinvest in our local communities,” he said.
Chandiwala has lived in Vestavia Hills since 2004, and two of his children have graduated from Vestavia Hills High School.
“[I] definitely have been a long-time Vestavia resident and supporter of Vestavia through restaurants and retail and activities,” he said.
A big part of his new responsibilities will be focused in human resources, Chandiwala said, which is why his title was changed from “CFO,” which most people would just associate with the financial side of things.
Additionally, Chandiwala said, he wants to focus on educating the greater Birmingham area and beyond about the variety of products that the Birmingham bottling group produces.
“There are beverages that we sell and provide for all occasions,” he said. “I think the brand Coca-Cola speaks to quality, and I think people have a trust and love for the brand, and therefore that should translate to our full brand portfolio.”
UNITED leadership expressed its support of Chandiwala’s promotion in an April press release.
“Over the past five years, Hafiz has done an extraordinary job developing and executing our transactional strategy related to our franchise acquisitions,” said John Sherman, president and CEO. “We know he will do an outstanding job in his new role as executive vice president and chief administrative officer, helping us lead Coke UNITED into our exciting future.”
More information about Birmingham’s Coca-Cola UNITED group, including the products they produce, can be found at cocacolaunited.com/locations/birmingham.