Always Coca-Cola

Introduction: Soft drinks

Soft drink companies are feeling the pressure to evolve and grow with market demands. According to McGregor (2017), the bubble has burst on Australian soft drink manufacturing. Since consumers are becoming more health conscious, demand has shifted away from carbonated soft drinks and toward bottled water. Supermarkets and grocery stores are major channels for soft drink manufacturers. When consumers become more health conscious, these outlets react to the lessened demand and decrease their stock (see Figure 1). They also start producing their own products to better meet their customers’ needs.

McGregor (2017) reports that growth has been and will continue to be slow in the industry, predicting 1.0% annual growth over the next five years, bolstered only by the growing popularity of energy and sport drinks. This may impact production and profitability of the two major players in Australian soft drink production, Asahi Holdings (25.5% market share) and Coca-Cola Amatil Limited (53.7% market share) (McGregor, 2017). This report examines the Coca-Cola company in depth.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola is more than a company; it is a global success story. Coca-Cola commands over half of the world’s soft drinks market at 51% and is often referred to as the best known brand (Vernon, 2005, p. 273). According to Felony (2016, p.23), people in over 200 countries consume 1.9 billion servings of Coca-Cola beverages every day. 

The Coca-Cola company, or officially Coca-Cola Amatil Limited in Australia, is the country’s biggest soft drink manufacturer. They produce mostly non-alcoholic beverages (see Figure 2), such as Coca-Cola, Fanta, Sprite, Mother, Deep Springs, Vitamin water and other beverages (McGregor, 2017). The Australian headquarters, run out of North Sydney, has distribution rights across Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Samoa (McGregor, 2017). Recently, the company has rolled out several initiatives to bolster profits, such as a major overall to production processes, called Project Zero, which cut $100 million over three years (McGregor, 2017). There are a number of factors that have affected the relative popularity of the company and three are examined below: how Coca-Cola became an international company; its successful approaches to cultural understanding and marketing; and its sometimes questionable environmental practices.    

American values to international presence

The company came from an unlikely beginning. In 1886, founder Dr. John Styth Pemberton, invented and marketed it as a headache cure, touted on the bottle as “not only a delicious and invigorating beverage, but a valuable Brain Tonic and cure for all nervous afflictions” (Vernon, 2005, p. 273). With each change of hands, the company stabilised financially, improved its marketing techniques and solidified its values. Allen (2015, p. 35) notes that, by World War II, Coca-Cola had made its familiar red logo synonymous with American values, so its worldwide expansion excited or angered people in many countries. The company, its products and brand are now ubiquitous and hold an international presence.