Spotlight: Coca-Cola

National “Have a Coke” Day is celebrated each year on May 8, marking the date the first Coca‑Cola was sold on May 8, 1886 at Jacobs’ Pharmacy in Atlanta. Dr. John Stith Pemberton, a pharmacist, took a jug full of a syrup he had created down the street to the soda fountain at Jacobs’ Pharmacy. There the syrup was mixed with carbonated water to create a soda fountain drink that was deemed “excellent” and sold for five cents a glass. At the time, Coca‑Cola contained a small amount of cocaine and was marketed as a medicinal tonic that could help with headaches and fatigue.

After Dr. Pemberton’s death, Atlanta businessman Asa Griggs Candler bought the formula and the rights to Coca‑Cola. In 1892, he officially formed The Coca‑Cola Company. Chandler focused heavily on advertising to grow the brand, using posters and logos to make Coca‑Cola recognizable across the United States. The drink became an increasingly popular staple at soda fountains. In 1899, two Chattanooga lawyers, Joseph Whitehead and Benjamin Thomas, traveled to Atlanta to negotiate the rights to bottle Coca‑Cola so it could be enjoyed outside of a soda fountain. Whitehead and Thomas procured a geographic bottling contract, and shortly thereafter, The Coca‑Cola Company began franchising the rights to bottle Coca‑Cola in cities across the U.S. By 1920, over 1,200 Coca‑Cola bottling operations were established. In 1923, the company introduced “6-packs,” packaging which allowed customers to easily transport multiple glass bottles at a time.

When World War II broke out, Coca‑Cola was being bottled in 44 countries on both sides of the conflict. After the United States entered the war in 1941, Coca-Cola Company president Robert Woodruff pledged "to see that every man in uniform gets a bottle of Coca‑Cola for 5 cents, wherever he is and whatever it costs the Company." Over 5 billion bottles were consumed by military service personnel during the war. While GI Joes were enjoying a taste of home, locals around the globe were being introduced to Coca-Cola for the first time. When the war ended, Coca-Cola was well-situated for world-wide expansion when bottling plants that had been set up close to combat areas could be transitioned to peacetime production.

Coca‑Cola continued to thrive globally throughout the 20^th century. The company became known for extensive advertising campaigns. Its product line grew to include different flavors and diet soda options. Today, Coca‑Cola is sold in more than 200 countries. It is estimated that the company sells nearly 2 billion beverage servings each day. According to several sources, “Coca-Cola” is the second most universally recognized word on earth after “Okay.”

National “Have a Coke Day,” which commemorates the history of the drink and brand, is not to be confused with “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke” Day, which is celebrated each year on July 8. That day marks the debut of Coca‑Cola’s famous “Hilltop” television commercial, which first aired nationally in the United States on July 8, 1971.  The commercial, created during a time of global tension, featured young people from different countries standing on a hilltop singing a catchy tune about global harmony, with Coca‑Cola symbolizing common ground among cultures. While “I’d Like to Buy the World a Coke” became one of the most recognizable advertising messages in history, it is not Coca-Cola’s most iconic marketing campaign. That honor goes to the Coca-Cola Christmas campaigns from 1930 to 1964, which utilized drawings by Michigan artist Haddon Sundblom to popularize a plump, jolly, red-suited version of Santa Claus.

Partnerships have been another key to the success of Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola is the longest-standing partner of the Olympic Games, supporting every edition of the Games since Amsterdam in 1928. In 1955, up and coming restaurant owner Ray Kroc began a relationship between his fledgling McDonald’s restaurants and the well-established Coca-Cola Company. If you think that Coke tastes better at McDonald’s, you might be right. McDonald’s states that it takes several steps to ensure a high quality fountain soda experience. First, McDonald’s receives its Coca-Cola syrup in stainless steel tanks, rather than the more commonly used plastic bags. Then, the water and Coca-Cola syrup are pre-chilled before being placed in the fountain dispensers. McDonald’s uses a ratio of syrup calculated to account for ice to melt, filters the water before it enters the dispenser, and keeps the entire fountain beverage system cold to guarantee a refreshing outcome. Finally, McDonald’s claims to offer straws that are slightly wider than a typical straw allowing more of the beverage to reach the palate.

While the secret recipe has been entirely cocaine free since 1929, Coca-Cola is still enjoyed 140 years after its debut. Today, it is sold in every country in the world except North Korea and Cuba.