International Finance and Management

This document discusses the history and global expansion of Coca-Cola Company, focusing on its marketing strategies. It explores how the company marketed its drink, entered the international stage, and built a strong brand image. The document also examines the company's approach to globalization and its future plans to address issues like obesity. The Coca-Cola portfolio and financial performance are also discussed.

Running head: International Finance and Management
International Finance and Management
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International Finance and Management
Coca-Cola Company started up in 1886 due to the curiosity of two men, a pharmacist, and a
doctor. They created flavored syrup then gave some to their neighboring pharmacy where they
mixed their syrup with carbonated water. Those who sampled it declared it excellent Dr.
Pemberton’s partner and Frank M are the one credited with the naming of the drink and
designing its trademark as well “Coca-Cola.
How did they market their drink? Their first marketing was executed through coupons thus
promoting free samples, and this was considered very innovative back in the year 1887,
newspaper marketing followed after (Greenfield, 2016). Late in the 1970s advertising of Coca-
Cola was connected to having a good time, friends and fun. Coca-Cola advertisement features
some memorable slogans like “Catch the wave,” “Can’t beat the feeling,” “Coke is it” and the
most famous slogan “The pause that refreshes” which appeared in 1929 (Laruccia et al., 2018).
So how did they enter the international stage? Coca-Cola has used branding as well as cost
leadership; the main goal of cost leadership is to have the lowest cost in the market. Most people
see coca cola as friendly, traditional and patriotic, and branding has helped the company a lot
with slogans like "always Coca-Cola” which is reinforced with patriotic images improve the
company to hold on to their consumers.( Samiee, 2019). To meet the high demand of the
consumer Cander who had acquired the right to the Coca-Cola formula opened up more plants in
Dallas, Los Angeles and Chicago In 1880s the coca- cola drink was usually available in
fountains but in 1894 a business named Joseph Biendenharm began to bottle the beverage
because of the high demand of the beverage, so now the consumers could take their drink to their
homes and enjoy it in the luxury of their home ( Gersen & Hemphi, 2019).. Later in 1899 candler

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sold bottling rights of the sdrink to two lawyers namely Joseph Whitehead and Benjamin
Thomas. In 1919 the company was sold to a group that was headed by Ernest Woodruff later his
son Robert.W.Wooodruff was elected as the president of the company, he spread the soft drink to
the rest of the world thus broadening the rage in which the company operates.
The Coca-Cola Company started distributing in six packs thus encouraging purchase for their
home. Later in 1928, the company began sponsoring for the Olympic Games thus exposing the
company internationally, so through this sponsoring any country that would be involved in the
Olympics games would come across the Coca-Cola drink. The company usually set up small
kiosks outside the venues during the Olympic Games. Since the 1950s they have been during
Fifa world cup matches in stadiums. In 1976 Fifa signed the first ever sponsorship between the
company and an international sport governing like FIFA thus being considered as the "World's
biggest sports fan" (Schmidt et al., 2016). As the world entered World War II in1941, there was
high demand from the USA soldiers who were overseas, due to this high demand abroad the
company decided to build bottling plants overseas to meet the demand of the consumers.
Between the year 1940s and 1960s, the Foundation was laid for the company to do business
abroad now as the number of country bottling had almost doubled now. During the war,
consumers started requesting for more option, and their request was heard, and finally, in 1955
they started producing bigger sizes that they used to use and letter on they were packed in metal
cans. In 1977 they started producing 2 liter bottles for the first time meeting up with the demand
of the international consumers (Wilson, 2017).
So how does the strong brand image of the company? First of all, Coca-Cola-owned at least five
brands of soft drink all over the world. How does this help the company? This helps the company

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International Finance and Management
to bring new soft drink flavors into the market while the strong brand of the company supports
the consumers to recall at the same time enters the new market while still holding on to the old
one (Jones & Comfort, 2018).
How is the Coca-Cola Company able to hold its global market? The company is ready to hold
on to its global market by operating as a multi-local business rather than serving as a global
business. Since one geographical area demand might be different from the other, the research to
have an idea of what the consumers in each region like or want thus when they come up with
products accepted by the specific geographical area. Due to this strategy, the company can meet
the demand of the global population be it USA, India, China, etc. No matter his
geographicalarea. So they are localized though geographic marketing plan.
How has globalization affected the Coca-Cola Company? Coca-Cola is known to be one of the
most wide spread company in the world. It currently operates in 200 countries which usually
have an estimate of 84,000 supplier’s in each state. This is as a resort of globalization; Earlier in
the 1880s John Pemberton made sure the company has consistency and provides high-quality
products for its consumers.
Coca-Cola Company started being globalized in the 1990s when the company decided to build a
bottling plant in Cuba, Panamaand other areas due to the high demand of their drink by the
soldiers who were in the war overseas. By 1926, Coca-Cola had already established a strong
bond around the globe with other countries. This helped out the Coca-Cola Company to proceed
with its quest for mass production and rapid expansion of its product by use of local branches
and local partnerships. By the time the cold war and World War II ended, the company was

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International Finance and Management
accurately marked as a corporation which is officially global since it had continued its expansion
for several centuries around the world.
What's the company's action and way forward? The Coca- Cola Company has continued on their
journey trying all their best to be more useful to their partners by addressing the severe problems
around the world like obesity. (Gertner & Rifkin, 2018). For the past three years, the company
has listened and learned from the community, the public health, associates, customers, and their
consumers so as to understand the best appropriate action to take so as to participate in fighting
obesity in a transparent way that will be of much benefit to everyone. The Coca-Cola company
has made a decision to become a total beverage company by giving everyone around the globe
more soft drinks they want and the way they want it either canned or bottled whether they prefer
less sugar in their drinks, more natural source or organic. Because the Coca-Cola Company is on
board with the fight against obesity, they've started including more low and no sugar brands all
around the globe and investing in other alternatives besides sugar where else expanding the
availability of smaller packaging across the markets (Gehani, 2016). In the year 2017, the
company successfully reduced the amount of sugar in their drinks in more than 300 drinks
globally while more than 500 new products were introduced.
Coca-Cola portfolio: Coca-cola may be said to be one of the most famous or familiar companies
in the whole world. The company is more than a soft drink company as they are also known as a
coconut water company, an organic tea company, and others. They are known to offer over 80
soft drinks in the USA specifically, including 250 low calories drinks and no calories option.
They make sure that they are providing something for everything from sport drinks, enhanced
water, ready to drink coffee, and protein parked dairy beverages, if you wish to have it they will

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International Finance and Management
make sure you will find what you want under their brand. Here are just some of the product that
the Coca-Cola Company offers around the globe including household brands and some future
products: Coca-Cola Zero sugar, suja, Fresca, Zico, fairlife, SmartWater, Topo Chico, Powerade,
Honest kids, Odwalla, core power, sprite, Kinley Soda, Minute Maid. In the past year(2018) the
company's net revenues declined by 10% to 31.9 billion dollars for that year while the organic
revenues grew by five %this was driven by 1% sales growth and 4% price growth. The
companies operation margin contained items that impacted comparability expanded. The
expansion of the margin was possible because of the lower margin of bottling operations as well
as the ongoing productivity efforts of the company. In nonalcoholic ready to drink beverages, the
company keeps on gaining value share in the market. The cash flow has risen compared to the
previous year upto14% that is $6.0 billion. For the full year share repurchases, the company
purchases for the stocks for treasury were $1.9 Billion and net share amounting to $442 million.
(Banks, 2016).
QUESTIONAIRE
1. When do you think of a cold drink what comes in your mind?........................................
2. How does soda brands usually satisfy your needs?........................................................
3. How do often do you take a soft drink from Coca-cola company?
On special occasions
Once a day

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International Finance and Management
Once a week
Several times a week
Never
4. Which Coca-colabrand do you like?
Coca Cola
Fanta
Sprite
Mirinda
Seven up
Other
5. How well are you satisfied with the coca cola band?
Am very satisfied
Satisfied
Average
Dissatisfied
Extremely Dissatisfied
6. How would you rate the cost of the coca cola products?
Excellent
Above average
Average
Below average

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International Finance and Management
Poor
7. What's your favoriteCoca-cola flavor?
Vannila coke
Cherry coke
Coca cola lite
Coca cola classic
Diet coke
8. How did you come to know the Coca-Cola drink? …………………………………

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International Finance and Management
References
Banks, H. (2016). The business of peace: Coca-Cola's contribution to stability, growth, and
optimism. Business Horizons, 59(5), 455-461.
Gehani, R. R. (2016). Corporate brand value shifting from identity to innovation capability:
From Coca-Cola to Apple. Journal of technology management & innovation, 11(3), 11-
20.
Gersen, J., & Hemphi, C. S. (2019). 33 Coca-Cola Bottle. A History of Intellectual Property in
50 Objects, 273.
Gertner, D., & Rifkin, L. (2018). Coca‐Cola and the Fight against the Global Obesity
Epidemic. Thunderbird International Business Review, 60(2), 161-173.
Greenfield, S. (2016). Giving the Global High Sign: Coca-Cola Advertising of the “American
Way” in Life Magazine, 1941-1947.
Jones, P., & Comfort, D. (2018). The Coca Cola Brand and Sustainability. Indonesian Journal
of Applied Business and Economic Research, 1(1), 34-46.
Laruccia, M. M., Rodrigues, A. P., Tristão, J. A. M., Júnior, J. P., & Bairon, M. C. P. R. S.
(2018). Brand Innovation and Sign Mobility of Slogans: An Analysis of Coke Slogans.
IJAME.
Samiee, S. (2019). Reflections on global brands, global consumer culture and globalization.
International Marketing Review, (pp. 67-74).

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Schmidt, S., Langner, S., Hennigs, N., Limbach, M., Rothensee, M, & Wiedmann, K. (2016).
Sponsoring FIFA World Cup vs. Olympic Games: Coca Cola, a Classic American
Brand, and Its Explicit and Implicit Sponsoring Success at Worldwide Sports Events. In
Celebrating America’s Pastimes: Baseball, Hot Dogs, Apple Pie and Marketing? (pp.
501-502).
Wilson, (2017). Coca-cola amatil: A bottler recharging growth with energy drinks. Kellogg
School of Management Cases, 1-15.