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Coca-Cola originated in 1886 from a pharmacist from Atlanta called John S. Pemberton, at the Pemberton Chemical Company, which he owns. Frank Robinson, John's bookkeeper, decided on the name of Coke, writing it in a flowy way that we now see today. Coke was originally sold as a tonic to cure most things, he based it on cocaine from coca leaf and caffeine extracts from the kola nut. The cocaine was later taken out in 1903.
https://www.britannica.com/money/The-Coca-Cola-Company -
In 1891, a different pharmacist from Atlanta gained possession of the business. His name was Asa Griggs Candler, and he had to pay $2,300 and had to exchange a few proprietary rights to obtain possession of the company. He then incorporated Coca-Cola as a company in 1892.
https://www.britannica.com/money/The-Coca-Cola-Company -
Coca-Cola was trademarked and registered in the U.S. Patent Office in 1893, but the trademark "Coke" was originally used in advertising in 1941 and was then registered in 1945.
https://www.britannica.com/money/The-Coca-Cola-Company -
Before being put into glass bottles on March 12, 1894, Coke had been a fountain drink. When Coke started becoming bottled, a bottle of Coke was only sold for five cents, and it stayed that way until 1959.
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/march-12/coca-cola-sold-in-glass-bottles-for-first-time -
After WWII, Coke purchased the rights to Fanta, a drink that originated in Germany and was also a Soft drink. Coke also partnered with McDonald's to gain more profit.
https://www.britannica.com/money/The-Coca-Cola-Company -
In the '80s, Coke and Pepsi fought over which "Cola" was better. Coke was behind because of a new flavor called "New Coke", which had flunked in sales, and Pepsi was becoming a better alternative to Coke. Though Coke had always been more popular, Pepsi had made a marketing campaign called the "Pepsi Challenge", where people would drink Coke and Pepsi with a blindfold, and most preferred Pepsi.
https://www.history.com/articles/cola-wars-pepsi-new-coke-failure -
Coke had released "New Coke", which had flopped because of the rising popularity of Pepsi, and many thought that "New Coke" was sweeter than the original because of Pepsi's new success, believing that Coke was copying Pepsi, and "New Coke" was a knockoff. Because "New Coke" was flopping so badly, Coke was forced to bring back Original Coke, which eventually completely replaced "New Coke".
https://www.history.com/articles/why-coca-cola-new-coke-flopped -
In response to Pepsi becoming more popular, Coke made Diet Coke, and caffeine-free versions of Coke and Diet Coke, They also changed their recipe to add corn syrup to replace sugar. They also brought back the Original Coke flavor and then separated it from the "New Coke". Coke then became #1 again, but still this day, Coke and Pepsi are trying to be better than each other.
https://www.history.com/articles/cola-wars-pepsi-new-coke-failure -
Coke Zero Sugar launched in 2017, leading the way for more futuristic and new innovations from Coke. They have further expanded on this, making Diet Coke and more variations of Coke Zero.
https://www.britannica.com/money/The-Coca-Cola-Company -
In the future, I believe that there will be freeze-dried Coke for astronauts to have in space. Or, make it have many electrolights, becoming a good drink for athletes to consume; they might also make new flavors to entice consumers to buy their products.