When you sit down after a long day to have a good meal, maybe at a restaurant or maybe at home, typically you might have a big plate of food in front of you ready to be devoured. Something is missing though, and what might that be? A nice cold can of soda. There is one question to be asked, is it going to be Coca-Cola or Pepsi?
For a long time society has often had the tendency to look at Coca-Cola and Pepsi as interchangeable due to their similar taste and flavor. This has caused quite the competition between the two companies because restaurants will usually choose one company and their products over the other. They are also competing against each other for the consumers vote. Some people prefer the taste of Pepsi products and others would rather have Coca-Cola. Why are they seen as substitutes for each other though? Why are they so similar and what makes them different?
Believe it or not Coco-Cola’s origin story starts in a pharmacy. In downtown Atlanta on May 8, 1886 the very first glass of Coca-Cola was served by Dr. John Pemberton. Dr. Pemberton was a local and was working on adding a sweet syrup to carbonated water, which eventually was named Coca-Cola.
Similar to Coca-Cola, Pepsi also had its start in North Carolina under a pharmacist named Dr. Caleb Bradham in 1893. However, unlike Coca-Cola, Pepsi actually started under a different name called “Brad’s Drink”. It wasn’t until 1898 that Dr.Bradham changed the name of the drink to Pepsi-Cola to give it a more appealing name since the drink was gaining popularity.
It is interesting that Coca-Cola and Pepsi have similarities even starting at their origin story. Both were created by pharmacist in the South in the late 1800s. They also have similar names because they both include “Cola”. Also the names of both companies original drinks became the name of the entire company. They even have opposing colors for their packaging, Coca-Cola being red and Pepsi being blue.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi have doubled each other from the start and have created a great competition within the market since they are seen as substitute products for each other by many. Yet so many people will argue they taste different, while so many others say they taste the same. It’s fascinating how society views and is affected by the competition of companies that double each other.
Sources
- The birth of a refreshing idea – news & articles. The Coca-Cola Company. (2022). Retrieved September 14, 2022, from https://www.coca-colacompany.com/company/history/the-birth-of-a-refreshing-idea
- Union. (2022). Where we started. Pepsi Cares. Retrieved September 14, 2022, from https://www.pepsiborninthecarolinas.com/history
