My wife and I got away late last month for a vacation to Southern Italy’s Amalfi Coast. I was taking some time off but couldn’t help making a few casual beverage observations.
First, when it comes to carbonated soft drinks, Coca-Cola appears to dominate the region. From the small local market near our Airbnb rental in tiny Conca dei Marini, to the trendy restaurants in mid-size Sorrento, there was always a Coke for sale. We didn’t stumble on a Pepsi until we hit a market in the much larger city of Naples.
While this was no formal survey, the disparity actually makes sense to me, knowing something about Coca-Cola’s and PepsiCo’s global strategies. PepsiCo’s global beverage expansion strategy has historically focused...
Momentum is growing within the Trump Administration to cut carbonated soft drinks from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as SNAP. US Health Department Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced late last week...
There’s a question Pam Stewart has consistently fielded from friends and family in recent years about her work at Coca-Cola: When is Costco’s iconic $1.50 hot dog combo going to include Coke again? Stewart, who is chief customer officer for retail within Coca-Cola’s North America Operating Unit, answered that question this year when her team won back Costco pouring rights from PepsiCo after a dozen years. “I finally get an A on the report card after so many years of hard toiling,” she said in an interview with BD. Stewart gets an A from more than just family and friends. During her 25-year career in the Coca-Cola system, Stewart has earned a reputation as an agile leader and strong collaborator who is a rising star within Coca-Cola. Her experience across the Coca-Cola System, including at Coca-Cola Enterprises, spans finance, sales, operations, and general management. She also serves on the board of directors for snack company Utz Brands. Before her career at Coca-Cola, Stewart spent several years in the telecommunications industry. BD spoke to Stewart to get her view of the current retail customer environment in the US.
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The following interview has been condensed and edited for clarity:
A big question for independent US Pepsi bottlers is whether they are in line to distribute two brands at the center of key PepsiCo-related deals this year. The newest deal is PepsiCo’s pending acquisition of prebiotic soda leader Poppi for $1.95 billion, announced on March 17 (BD sent an email news alert to subscribers). The other is the...
Coca-Cola’s alcohol subsidiary Red Tree Beverages has launched new two new Lines: Minute Maid Spiked Vodka Lemonade, and Minute Maid Spiked Vodka Pink Lemonade. The drink contains...
