Coca-Cola History (2024)

FAQs

What is the brief history of Coca-Cola? ›

Our History

On May 8, 1886, Dr. John Pemberton served the world's first Coca‑Cola at Jacobs' Pharmacy in Atlanta, Ga. From that one iconic drink, we've evolved into a total beverage company. More than 2.1 billion servings of our drinks are enjoyed in more than 200 countries and territories each day.

Coca-Cola launched a competing product with the brand Tab Clear which was never built to succeed but was a “suicidal” and “kamikaze” marketing effort of Coca-Cola to destroy Crystal Pepsi.

John S. Pemberton, a pharmacist in Atlanta, Georgia, created the syrup for Coca‑Cola. He carried a jug of the new product down the street to Jacobs' Pharmacy in Atlanta. There, it was sampled, pronounced "excellent" and placed on sale as a soda fountain drink for five cents a glass.

The Origin of Coca‑Cola

On May 8, 1886, Dr. John Pemberton brought his perfected syrup to Jacobs' Pharmacy in downtown Atlanta where the first glass of Coca‑Cola was poured. Serving about nine drinks per day in its first year, Coca‑Cola was an exciting new drink in the beginning. See the story here of how it all began.

How many drinks does The Coca‑Cola Company sell worldwide each day? More than 1.9 billion servings of our drinks are enjoyed in more than 200 countries each day.

The Coca-Cola Company is an American corporation founded in 1892 and today engaged primarily in the manufacture and sale of syrup and concentrate for Coca-Cola, a sweetened carbonated beverage that is a cultural institution in the United States and a global symbol of American tastes.

“Those two companies helped each other grow and expand around the globe,” Mr. Starmann said. “Neither one would be what they are today without the other.” McDonald's is co*ke's largest restaurant customer, and the two companies maintain a unique, symbiotic relationship.

Advertising was an important factor in the successful sales of Coca-Cola, and by the turn of the century, the drink was sold across the United States and Canada. Around the same time, the company began selling syrup to independent bottling companies licensed to sell the drink.

Fans of the beverage Sierra Mist were disappointed when the drink disappeared in January. At that time, PepsiCo announced that the lemon-lime soda would be discontinued and replaced by a new drink called Starry.

Has co*ke ever tried to buy Pepsi? ›

On three occasions between 1922 and 1933, the Coca-Cola Company was offered the opportunity to purchase the Pepsi-Cola Company, which it declined on each occasion.

In blind taste tests, consumers generally preferred New co*ke over Pepsi and the original co*ke. But, consumers had a sentimental attachment to their beloved brand and reacted very negatively to New co*ke.

co*ke came before Pepsi, although only by a few years. Dr. John S. Pemberton created Coca Cola in 1886 while Pepsi did not come about until 1893.

If you don't know, Dr. Pepper is one of the oldest soda brands . . . older than BOTH Coca-Cola and Pepsi.

At 239 years of age and counting, Schweppes is not only the oldest soda brand in existence but the first bottled soft drink, period (via RFDTV). Schweppes did not introduce a flavored beverage until 1835, nearly four decades after Johann Jacob Schweppe's retirement (via Schweppes).

Pemberton originally touted his drink as a tonic for most common ailments, basing it on cocaine from the coca leaf and caffeine-rich extracts of the kola nut. The cocaine was removed from Coca-Cola's formula in about 1903.

The origins of cola can be traced back to the late 19th century. In 1881, a pharmacist named John Pemberton created a drink called "Pemberton's French Wine Coca," which was made with coca leaves (from which cocaine is derived), kola nuts, and sugar.

co*ke was the first soda ever created back in 1886. Then, in 1898, a rivalry that would span decades was born as soon as Pepsi hit the market. Today, each brand has a strong and distinct presence thanks to individual marketing strategies that make them obviously different from one another.

Coca-Cola is a carbonated, sweetened soft drink and is the world's best-selling soda. A popular nickname for Coca-Cola is co*ke. The Coca-Cola Company claims that the beverage is sold in more than 200 countries. Coca-Cola was first made in Columbus, Georgia.