Always Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola was invented in 1885 by a pharmacist named John Pemberton, who intended his product to become a cure for headaches and fatigue.
The three key ingredients in the original Coca-Cola were cocaine (coca), caffeine (cola), and carbonated water. (In the late 1800s, the idea that carbonated or mineral water had healing properties was a popular belief.)
According to Evita Ochel of EvolvingWellness.com, the cocaine in Coca-Cola was banned by the early 1900s, but the company kept the name. Coca-Cola is now a major corporation with a portfolio of more than 3,300 beverages.
Say Pepsi, Please
Pepsi-Cola is another soft drink with an interesting story behind its name. Caleb Bradham, a pharmacist and drugstore owner in New Bern, North Carolina, invented Pepsi in 1898, according to PepsiCo, Inc.
During the hot summer, Bradham began experimenting with combinations of spices, juices, and syrups in his search for a refreshing new drink to serve his customers. His final creation was a unique mix of carbonated water, sugar, vanilla, rare oils, pepsin, and kola nut extract; it became so popular that his customers named it Brad’s Drink. Bradham, however, noticed that sales were growing and decided to form a company to market his beverage. He bought the trade name Pep Cola for $100 from a competitor in Newark, New Jersey, that had gone broke, and registered his own trademark, Pepsi-Cola, in 1903.
Initially, Bradham mixed the syrup himself and sold his drink exclusively through soda fountains, but he soon realized that he would do better to bottle Pepsi and allow his customers to drink it anywhere.
Bradham lost his company after gambling on the fluctuations of sugar prices during World War I. He had believed that prices would rise, but when they fell instead, they left him with an overpriced sugar inventory, and Pepsi-Cola went bankrupt in 1923. Then, in 1931, the Loft Candy Company bought Pepsi-Cola, and Loft president Charles G. Guth reformulated the drink, reviving the brand and beginning years of rivalry with competitor Coca-Cola.
The Name Game
Have the names of these companies determined their successes? I suppose there are more important things than a brand, but sipping a Brad’s Drink while BackRubbing on my Bok Choy doesn’t quite trip off the tongue as easily as having a Pepsi while Googling on my Apple.
Always Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola was invented in 1885 by a pharmacist named John Pemberton, who intended his product to become a cure for headaches and fatigue.
The three key ingredients in the original Coca-Cola were cocaine (coca), caffeine (cola), and carbonated water. (In the late 1800s, the idea that carbonated or mineral water had healing properties was a popular belief.)
According to Evita Ochel of EvolvingWellness.com, the cocaine in Coca-Cola was banned by the early 1900s, but the company kept the name. Coca-Cola is now a major corporation with a portfolio of more than 3,300 beverages.
Say Pepsi, Please
Pepsi-Cola is another soft drink with an interesting story behind its name. Caleb Bradham, a pharmacist and drugstore owner in New Bern, North Carolina, invented Pepsi in 1898, according to PepsiCo, Inc.
During the hot summer, Bradham began experimenting with combinations of spices, juices, and syrups in his search for a refreshing new drink to serve his customers. His final creation was a unique mix of carbonated water, sugar, vanilla, rare oils, pepsin, and kola nut extract; it became so popular that his customers named it Brad’s Drink. Bradham, however, noticed that sales were growing and decided to form a company to market his beverage. He bought the trade name Pep Cola for $100 from a competitor in Newark, New Jersey, that had gone broke, and registered his own trademark, Pepsi-Cola, in 1903.
Initially, Bradham mixed the syrup himself and sold his drink exclusively through soda fountains, but he soon realized that he would do better to bottle Pepsi and allow his customers to drink it anywhere.
Bradham lost his company after gambling on the fluctuations of sugar prices during World War I. He had believed that prices would rise, but when they fell instead, they left him with an overpriced sugar inventory, and Pepsi-Cola went bankrupt in 1923. Then, in 1931, the Loft Candy Company bought Pepsi-Cola, and Loft president Charles G. Guth reformulated the drink, reviving the brand and beginning years of rivalry with competitor Coca-Cola.
The Name Game
Have the names of these companies determined their successes? I suppose there are more important things than a brand, but sipping a Brad’s Drink while BackRubbing on my Bok Choy doesn’t quite trip off the tongue as easily as having a Pepsi while Googling on my Apple.