Academia de Studii Economice din Bucuresti

Facultatea de Business si Turism

Coca-Cola Company

Student: Constantin Laura-Costina

Seria A, Grupa 323

Bucuresti 2015

Coca-Cola History
Coca-Cola history began in 1886 when the curiosity of an Atlanta pharmacist, Dr. John S.
Pemberton, led him to create a distinctive tasting soft drink that could be sold at soda
fountains. He created a flavored syrup, took it to his neighborhood pharmacy, where it was
mixed with carbonated water and deemed excellent by those who sampled it. Dr.
Pembertons partner and bookkeeper, Frank M. Robinson, is credited with naming the
beverage Coca-Cola as well as designing the trademarked, distinct script, still used today.
Did you know? The first servings of Coca-Cola were sold for 5 cents per glass. During the
first year, sales averaged a modest nine servings per day in Atlanta. Today, daily servings
of Coca-Cola beverages are estimated at 1.9 billion globally.
Prior to his death in 1888, just two years after creating what was to become the worlds #1selling sparkling beverage, Dr. Pemberton sold portions of his business to various parties,
with the majority of the interest sold to Atlanta businessman, Asa G. Candler. Under Mr.
Candlers leadership, distribution of Coca-Cola expanded to soda fountains beyond Atlanta. In
1894, impressed by the growing demand for Coca-Cola and the desire to make the beverage
portable, Joseph Biedenharn installed bottling machinery in the rear of his Mississippi soda
fountain, becoming the first to put Coca-Cola in bottles. Large scale bottling was made
possible just five years later, when in 1899, three enterprising businessmen in Chattanooga,
Tennessee secured exclusive rights to bottle and sell Coca-Cola. The three entrepreneurs
purchased the bottling rights from Asa Candler for just $1. Benjamin Thomas, Joseph
Whitehead and John Lupton developed what became the Coca-Cola worldwide bottling
system.

Among the biggest challenges for early bottlers, were imitations of the beverage by
competitors coupled with a lack of packaging consistency among the 1,000 bottling plants at
the time. The bottlers agreed that a distinctive beverage needed a standard and distinctive
bottle, and in 1916, the bottlers approved the unique contour bottle. The new Coca-Cola bottle
was so distinctive it could be recognized in the dark and it effectively set the brand apart from
competition. The contoured Coca-Cola bottle was trademarked in 1977. Over the years, the
Coca-Cola bottle has been inspiration for artists across the globe a sampling of which can
be viewed at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta. Check out a preview of the latest art exhibit.
The first marketing efforts in Coca-Cola history were executed through coupons promoting
free samples of the beverage. Considered an innovative tactic back in 1887, couponing was
followed by newspaper advertising and the distribution of promotional items bearing the
Coca-Cola script to participating pharmacies.
Fast forward to the 1970s when Coca-Colas advertising started to reflect a brand connected
with fun, friends and good times. Many fondly remember the 1971 Hilltop Singers performing
Id Like to Buy the World a Coke, or the 1979 Have a Coke and a Smile commercial
featuring a young fan giving Pittsburgh Steeler, Mean Joe Greene, a refreshing bottle of

Coca-Cola. You can enjoy these and many more advertising campaigns from around the world
in the Perfect Pauses Theater at the World of Coca-Cola.

EVOLUTION OF THE COCA-COLA BOTTLE

The 1980s featured such memorable slogans as Coke is It!, Catch the Wave and Cant
Beat the Feeling. In 1993, Coca-Cola experimented with computer animation, and the
popular Always Coca-Cola campaign was launched in a series of ads featuring animated
polar bears. Each animated ad in the Always Coca-Cola series took 12 weeks to produce
from beginning to end. The bears were, and still are, a huge hit with consumers because of
their embodiment of characteristics like innocence, mischief and fun. A favorite feature at the
World of Coca-Cola is the ability to have your photo taken with the beloved 7 tall Coca-Cola
Polar Bear.
Did you know? One of the most famous advertising slogans in Coca-Cola history The Pause
That Refreshes first appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in 1929. The theme of pausing
with Coca-Cola refreshment is still echoed in todays marketing.

In 2009, the Open Happiness campaign was unveiled globally. The central message of
Open Happiness is an invitation to billions around the world to pause, refresh with a
Coca-Cola, and continue to enjoy one of lifes simple pleasures. The Open Happiness
message was seen in stores, on billboards, in TV spots and printed advertising along with
digital and music components including a single featuring Janelle Monae covering the
1980 song, Are You Getting Enough Happiness? The happiness theme continued with
Open the Games. Open Happiness featured during the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in
Vancouver, followed by a 2010 social media extension, Expedition 206 an initiative
whereby three happiness ambassadors travel to 206 countries in 365 days with one mission:
determining what makes people happy. The inspirational year-long journey is being recorded
and communicated via blog posts, tweets, videos and pictures.
Experts have long believed in the connection between happiness and wellness, and Coca-Cola
is proud to have played a part in happy occasions around the globe. In Atlanta, check out
the Coca-Cola Theater at the World of Coca-Cola and see the magic that goes into every
bottle of Coca-Cola. Interested in learning even more about Coca-Cola history? Go
to www.coca-colacompany.com and check out the History section.

Coca-Cola Story

The World of Coca-Cola at Pemberton Place celebrated its Grand Opening on May 24, 2007.
Its the only place where you can explore the fascinating story of Coca-Cola the worlds
best-known beverage brand.
The World of Coca-Cola is the home of the more than 125-year-old secret formula for
Coca-Cola and features more than 1,200 artifacts from around the world that, until now, have
never been displayed to the public before.
Around every corner youll experience something new and inviting. Youll see great
interactive exhibits such as a thrilling, multi-sensory 4-D movie (3-D glasses with moving
seats) and get an inside look at the bottling process. You can view more than 1,200 artifacts
from around the world that, until now, have never been displayed to the public before. You
can even give our 7-foot Coca-Cola Polar Bear a big hug! And of course, a World of CocaCola favoritethe tasting experience, will give you a refreshing opportunity to sample over
100 flavors from around the world.
All this and much more make the World of Coca-Cola a unique and must-see Atlanta
experience! A visit of the entire attraction is estimated to last an average of 2 hours.

Coca-Cola Beverages & Products

For almost 70 years, the only beverage produced and sold by The Coca-Cola Company was
the flagship Coca-Cola invented in Atlanta in 1886. It wasnt until 1955 that Coca-Cola
beverage offerings started to expand when a bottler in Italy started selling Fanta Orange. From
that point on, the Company began adding a wider variety of beverage selections and portion
sizes for consumers. The Coca-Cola Company believes in offering an assortment of beverages
for every lifestyle, life stage and life occasion. Today, over 500 beverage brands are sold in
more than 200 countries. This amounts to 3,500+ beverages in numerous categories, such as
regular, low- and no-calorie sparkling beverages; fruit juices and fruit drinks; bottled water;
sports and energy drinks and ready-to-drink teas and coffee.
Did you know? Coca-Cola sells soup in a can! Bistrone is a nourishing meal on the go,
available in two flavors in Japan.
Visitors to the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta have the opportunity to sample over 100 CocaCola beverages from around the world in the ever-popular Taste It! beverage lounge. Guests
can also try their hand at inventing new beverages by mixing flavor combinations using the
new interactive Coca-Cola Freestyle fountain dispenser. The touch-screen machine has the
capacity to dispense over 100 regular and low-calorie beverage brands in multiple taste
combinations.

More and more people are choosing low-calorie foods and beverages as a way to balance
caloric intake with physical activity. The Coca-Cola Company has a successful track-record of
product innovation in the low-calorie beverage category, with the introduction of Tab in 1963
and Diet Coke in 1982. By 1986, Diet Coke became the worlds top-selling diet cola and
continues to uphold that title today. Diet Cokes success led to the introduction of many flavor
extensions, such as Diet Coke with Lemon, Diet Vanilla Coke, Diet Cherry Coke, Diet Coke
with Lime and most recently, Diet Coke with Splenda. Recognizing that some consumers
want a no-calorie beverage with the distinctive taste of the original Coca-Cola brand, CocaCola Zero was introduced in 2005. Created to appeal to young adults, the launch of Coca-Cola
Zero was one of the most successful launches in The Coca-Cola Companys history. The
beverage is now available in more than 140 countries.
Of course, it all started with the original Coca-Cola brand beverage in 1886. Since that time,
there has been much speculation and rumor about what exactly is contained in the Secret
Formula of the worlds best known beverage. At the World of Coca-Cola, you can feel closer
than ever before to Coca-Colas most closely guarded trade secret and learn about the intrigue
behind the secret formula in our new Vault of the Secret Formula experience at the World of
Coca-Cola.
Coca-Cola remains committed to paying attention to consumers changing needs as well as
cultural diversity in what people like to drink and how they drink it. That commitment is
evident in initiatives from a group dedicated to identifying emerging brands to innovation in
packaging and recycling programs.

Did you know? Before it goes to market, each Coca-Cola product undergoes nearly 450
different tests to ensure that ingredient and packaging quality meets Company standards.
Among the newest choices for consumers is the mini can. At 7.5 ounces and only 90 calories,
it is a refreshing alternative for consumers who are conscious of portion and calorie control.
Another new choice is Sprite Green, the first naturally sweetened, reduced calorie sparkling
beverage in the U.S. made with TRUVIA natural sweetener. Each 8.5-ounce serving has 50
calories and 5% lemon juice. Lastly, in order to help consumers make more informed
decisions about their beverage selections, The Coca-Cola Company has added calorie
information to the front of product packaging.

The Coca-Cola Company cares about the health of consumers as well as the health of the
planet. As part of a quest to make every plastic bottle 100% renewable and recyclable, the
PlantBottle was introduced in 2009. PlantBottle packaging is a redesigned PET plastic bottle
made from up to 30% renewable plant-based material that is fully recyclable in most
communities. This is the only plastic bottle in the marketplace made from plant-based
material which helps reduce dependence on non-renewable sources. In the United States,
PlantBottle packaging is being used for all Dasani package sizes. The innovative bottle was
recently honored with a Greener Package Award. The second-annual Greener Package Awards
recognizes innovations that significantly reduce packagings environmental footprint.
PlantBottle also won the DuPont Award for Packaging Innovation and the Design for
Recycling Award from the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries.