Sprite, Minute Maid, Dasani, and Powerade all seem to have different origins as they all have different names. However, they all come from the same brand, Coca-Cola. They are all owned by Coca-Cola. Honest Tea and Fairlife are also under the once-coke company's influence.
Pepsi-Co. Inc. and The Coca-Cola Corporation maintain a duopoly within the carbonated soft drink (CSD) industry. According to Investopedia, Coca-Cola's carbonated soft drink market share amounted to 42.5% in 2015. Also, the same source reported that Coca-Cola had a market cap of $185.8 billion in 2020. Both companies are already warring parties of the "cola wars" and are expected to dominate the overall beverage market. In fact, Coca-Cola's market dominance is very significant as its products are simply available in every country, even in Cuba and North Korea.
Coca-cola started as a soft drink company that targeted the carbonated soft drink (CSD) industry. However, as the company became popular, it began to absorb various brands specializing in each drink type. Now, Coca-Cola's spectrum of products varies from Coke to iced tea to flavored water. It is also reported that Coca-Cola is investing a lot of resources in pioneering the energy drink market. A high protein, low sugar milk variant Fairlife is said to be successful among the millennials that want better products at a premium.
Coca-Cola understands trends of the market well. When health concerns like obesity and diabetes arose, Coca-Cola, fearing its loss of revenue, started developing lower-calorie and lower-sugar sodas to maintain its customers. Coca-Cola Zero and Diet Coke are popular relatively-healthy products. Also, when many people began to raise awareness toward environmental issues, this company introduced its various types of beverages into smaller-size recyclable plastic containers to show its directions toward the pro-environment business model.
The logo of Coca-Cola is written in the Spencerian script used by accountants during the 1920s. Thus, the logo reminds people of the old days when the United States experienced its best economic prosperity after World War I. In fact, only a few customers of Coca-Cola would know the feeling of the 1920s; however, the sense created by this logo clearly differentiates Coca-Cola from other competitors.
While Pepsi, its main competitor, decided to invest diversely in other industries, Coca-Cola is known to have dominated the beverage industry almost exclusively. This behavior of Coca-Cola communicates to the customers the concentration and focus to make good quality beverages, which subtly gives customers more credibility. However, Coca-Cola shows a philosophy of diversified but regulated: Unlike Pepsi, Coca-Cola never conducts the cross-promotion of multiple products in multiple industries.
Coca-Cola’s commercials, if summarized into one word, would be a pleasure. Coca-Cola uses very simple slogans such as "Enjoy," "You Can't Beat the Feeling," and "Happiness" that can be easily translated through any language across the globe. Simplicity in advertisements and commercials has increased its customers base.
According to Revenues and Profits 2021, Coca-Cola maintains a network of company-owned or -controlled bottling and distribution operations as well as independent bottling partners, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers.
Coca-Cola's famous business model: Concentrate Business
Coca-Cola only sells concentrates and syrups (including fountain syrups) to authorized bottling partners.
Bottling partners combine the concentrates with various options like sweeteners, sparkling water, etc to produce finished beverages.
The finished products are then packaged and sold to retailers or wholesalers.
Coca-Cola can avoid costs associated with manufacturing, storage, and distribution. Also, Coca-Cola can have bottling partners responsible for meeting customer demand; these partners have to conduct their research on local customers to carry out the finished branded beverages effectively.
