History and Background of Coca Cola, Research Paper Example

Coca-Cola’s origin lies in the invention of a distinctively-tasting fountain drink by an Atlanta pharmacist named Dr. John S. Pemberton in 1886. Dr. Pemberton’s product received enthusiastic feedback right from the beginning and it was his partner and bookkeeper, Frank M. Robinson who coined the name “Coca-Cola”. Frank also designed the script that continues to be embossed on all Coca-Cola bottles and cans (Coca-Cola).

Dr. Pemberton didn’t live long to see the success of the drink he had developed and died just two years later in 1888. But before his death, he sold parts of his business to different parties of whom Atlanta businessman Asa G. Candler acquired the largest stake who eventually expanded the company’s operations beyond Atlanta. Even though Joseph Biedenharn was the first individual to bottle Coca-Cola in 1894, three businessmen from Chattanooga, Tennessee obtained the rights in 1899 to bottle and sell Coca-Cola on large scale. These three businessmen were Benjamin Thomas, Joseph Whitehead, and John Lupton and also developed what eventually became the company’s worldwide bottling system (Coca-Cola).

The popularity of Coca-Cola led to emerge of imitation products. In addition, there was lack of packaging consistency among the company’s 1,000 bottling plants. In order to differentiate Coca-Cola products from the competition, the bottling plants agreed to a distinctive bottle design in 1916. The contoured Coca-Cola bottle design was not trademarked until 1977 though. As far as marketing efforts are concerned, Coca-Cola was as innovative in its early marketing efforts as was the company’s product. The company distributed coupons that entitled the holder to free samples and also placed ads in newspapers. The use of free samples was especially a revolutionary marketing tactic in 1887 (Coca-Cola).

Ernest Woodruff purchased the company from Asa Candler in 1919 and Ernest’s son Robert Woodruff became the company president in 1923. Woodruff saw huge marketing potential for Coca-Cola and significantly expanded Coca-Cola’s international reach during his 60-years long tenure. He targeted Olympic Games for marketing in 1928. His other marketing genius was aggressively promoting six-packs which made it convenient for consumers to drink Coca-Cola anywhere they wanted (Coca-Cola Great Britain).

When America entered WWII, Woodruff ordered the product to be sold to soldiers for 5 cents apiece no matter what it may cost the company. The war helped introduce Coca-Cola to many international consumers and provided strong foundation to Coca-Cola’s international conquest. The company also decided not to rely on a single product only and introduced new products, starting in the 1950s. Fanta was introduced to the market in the 1950s, followed by Sprite in 1961, and Fresca in 1966. The company especially became aggressive in advertising activities in the 1970s. One of the company’s earliest memorable ads made the tagline “I’d like to buy the world a Coke.” quite popular (Coca-Cola Great Britain).

In 1981, Roberto C. Goizueta became Coca-Cola’s Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO and restructured company to make it more efficient and competitive. He organized all of the company’s bottlers into a new company, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Inc. During his time, the company introduced Diet Coke which became the highest selling low calorie drink in the world within two years only. While Goizueta influenced the company to become bolder, his reign was also marked by certain failures one of which was the replacement of traditional formula with new formula, usually referred to as New Coke. Even though the preliminary market research indicated the new formula would be a success, the actual result turned out to be quite the opposite. Coca-Cola was eventually forced to bring back the traditional formula as Coca-Cola Classic (Coca-Cola Great Britain).

During the 1990s, Coca-Cola sought closer marketing associations with sports. During the 1990s, major events sponsored by the company included the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cup, Rugby World Cup, and NBA. The 1990s also saw the introduction of polar bears that are now essential component of the company’s global marketing campaign. The company further expanded its international reach by entering East Germany in 1990 and India in 1993. The 1990s also saw the addition of new products to the company’s product portfolio include sports drink Powerade. By 1997, the company was selling one billion servings daily on a global scale (Coca-Cola Great Britain).

Today, Coca-Cola sells over 500 non-alcoholic beverages worldwide. The company also operates the world’s largest beverage distribution system which supports consumption of 1.8 billion servings on a daily basis in more than 200 countries. As of December 31, 2012 the company employed 150,900 employees of which 68,300 were in the U.S. Despite being a global company, U.S. continues to be the company’s single most important market. Coca-Cola earned 41 percent of its net operating revenues or $19.7 billion in the U.S. alone in the year 2012 (Coca-Cola).

Coca-Cola is now being led by Mukhtar Kent who is Chairman of the Board of Directors, President, and the CEO of the company. Mr. Kent has risen through the ranks after joining the company in 1978. Mr. Kent served on a variety of leadership positions before taking the top helm. Between 1989 and 1995, Mr. Kent served as the President of the East Central Europe Division as well as the Senior Vice President of Coca-Cola International. From 1995 to 1998, Mr. Kent was the Managing Director of Coca-Cola Amatil-Europe and between 1999 and 2005, he served as President and CEO of Efes Beverage Group. Mr. Kent rejoined the company in May 2005 as President and COO, North America, Eurasia, and Middle East Group. He was appointed President, Coca-Cola International in January 2006 and Executive Vice President the following month. On July 1, 2008 Mr. Kent became the CEO of the company and Chairman of the Board of Directors in April 2009 (Coca-Cola).

The company’s grand scale of operations is also evident by looking at the company annual report for the year 2012. Coca-Cola’s annual revenues for the year 2012 were slightly over $48 billion while the company’s net income was slightly over $9 billion during the same year. The company had total assets of approximately $86.17 billion during the fiscal year 2012 out of which approximately $13.46 billion was in the form of cash and short-term investments (Coca-Cola) which demonstrate a strong liquidity position.

For fans of company, a visit to the Coca-Cola’s “World of Coca-Cola” in Atlanta is must where visitors can sample over 100 Coca-Cola beverages from around the world. Visitors can also demonstrate creativity by mixing flavors to create their own drinks. Coca-Cola continues to innovate in order to meet the unique needs of individual markets and one unique example of this is the company’s offering of can soups in Japan (Coca-Cola).

References

Coca-Cola. 10-K. Annual Report. Atlanta, GA: The Coca-Cola Company, 2012.

—. Coca-Cola Beverages and Products. 21 April 2014 <http://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/coca-cola-facts/coca-cola-beverages-and-products/>.

—. Coca-Cola History. 21 April 2014 <http://www.worldofcoca-cola.com/coca-cola-facts/coca-cola-history/>.

Coca-Cola Great Britain. History of Coca-Cola. 21 April 2014 <http://www.coca-cola.co.uk/about-us/history-of-coca-cola-company.html>.