The last time Coke changed its recipe ended in disaster
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President Trump said Wednesday that Coca-Cola agreed to use "REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States." Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
President Trump, a documented Coca-Cola fan, this week announced — and took credit for — a potential big change to the brand's signature formula.
- It could be a massive unforced error, if history's any guide.
Why it matters: 40 years ago this year, the Coca-Cola Co. changed its flagship recipe, swapping in its tried-and-true drink for New Coke, and consumers rebelled.
Driving the news: Trump said Wednesday that Coca-Cola agreed to use "REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States."
- The company later issued a statement that did not confirm it was switching its entire Coke product line to cane sugar, saying only it would have "more details on new innovative offerings" soon.
The intrigue: A cane sugar swap would create a Coca-Cola approximate to Mexican Coke — which has its own positive reputation among foodies — but might rub purists the wrong way.
Here's a look back at rise and fall of New Coke:
Why Coca-Cola changed the formula
State of play: In the 1980s, Coca-Cola's comfortable market lead over Pepsi was growing slimmer, and New Coke was the brand's attempt at regaining ground.
- "In 1985, The Coca‑Cola Company's share lead over its chief competitor, in its flagship market, with its flagship product, had been slowly slipping for 15 consecutive years. The cola category in general was lethargic. Consumer preference for Coca‑Cola was dipping, as was consumer awareness," the company says on its website.
- Pepsi's 1983 $5 million partnership with Michael Jackson, then the biggest pop-star in the world, didn't hurt brand recognition either.
New Coke was Coca-Cola's first change in 99 years.
- "We set out to change the dynamics of sugar colas in the United States, and we did exactly that — albeit not in the way we had planned," then-CEO Roberto Goizueta said in 1995.
The new formula was tasty, Coca-Cola's market research concluded – but it wasn't the original.
- Nearly 200,000 customers preferred the new taste in rounds of testing, the company reported.
- "What these tests didn't show, of course, was the bond consumers felt with their Coca‑Cola — something they didn't want anyone, including The Coca‑Cola Company, tampering with," the company says.
The backlash to New Coke
The big picture: Changing its formula was such a disaster that Coca-Cola even owns up to it as "the most memorable marketing blunder ever" on its website.
Calls flooded in not just to the 800-GET-COKE phone line, but to Coca‑Cola offices across the United States, the company says.
- Pepsi gave its employees a day off and declared victory in full-page newspaper advertisements that bragged, ''After 87 years of going at it eyeball to eyeball, the other guy just blinked."
On July 11, 1985 — 79 days after the initial announcement — Coca-Cola announced that the old formula would be returning to shelves.
- "The story that the 'old' Coca‑Cola was returning to store shelves as Coca‑Cola classic led two network newscasts and made the front page of virtually every major newspaper," the company says.
The bottom line: Mess with Coke at your own risk.
