Coca Cola Enterprises Inc Acquisitions example essay topic

he company's interests to stretch to extravagances such as giving out free drink coupons as a promotional exercise. With oil-cloth banners and streetcar signs, the drink began to sell extremely well. It is not clear why exactly Pemberton then sold the rights to the Coca-Cola formula - he had developed cancer and it is possible that his morphine addiction was now very serious - but in 1887, Willis Venable and George Lowndes purchased two-thirds of the rights. He told Lowndes "I am sick, and I believe I will never get out of this bed. The only thing I have is Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola some day will be a national drink.

I want to keep a third interest in it so that my son will always have a living". Little did Pemberton know that his son Charley would be dead from a morphine overdose only six years later. Pemberton's illness worsened, but he remained obsessed with perfecting the Coca-Cola formula. Several times in his dying months he struggled to his laboratory to experiment with a modified cola drink with celery extract. "He did not care anything about what he had already accomplished", one of his associates remarked, "he wanted something new".

On August 16, 1888, John Pemberton passed away. His obituary described him as "the oldest druggist of Atlanta and one of her best-known citizens an especially popular gentleman". Comments John Pemberton's obsessive search for the perfect drink is typical of the inventor and of the early stages of a corporate history. What begins as research becomes a self-sacrificing, heroic, project. One common feature of the great inventor is that they rarely profit themselves from their discoveries. Due to the poor business sense that Pemberton displayed towards the end of his career, the ownership of his idea was taken away from him, and his wife died a pauper.

Little did any of them know that this once obscure patent medicine would one day become a multi-million dollar business, and come to represent the essence of American culture. Although Coca-Cola Enterprises, established in 1986, is a young company, the roots of our business extend back to 1899, when the first Coca-Cola bottling operation began. In fact, when the first bottling franchise began operations in 1901, it operated under the ownership of Benjamin F. Thomas and James F. Johnston, grandfather of our former Chairman of the Board, Summerfield K. Johnston, Jr. Though Coca-Cola Enterprises is now the largest soft drink bottler in the world, each of our local bottling operations represent several decades of success in building the strongest brands in the world. Maintaining the local aspect of our business continues to be an integral part of our success... 1886 - John Pemberton creates Coca-Cola syrup.

1899 - Coca-Cola sold in bottles. 1901 - First bottling franchise formed. 1899-1909-379 bottling plants opened. First automatic fillers introduced. 1914 - The Coca-Cola Bottlers Association was formed. 1915 - The contour bottle was developed.

1919 - The first European bottling plant opens in Paris. Bottlers still delivering by horse or mule drawn drays. 1920- Over 1,000 bottling plants and bottlers now in existence. 1923 - Robert Woodruff becomes president of The Coca-Cola Company.

The use of cartons and coolers took hold. 1929 - The Glas cock cooler was invented. 1930 - First official cooler was found at service stations. 1935 - First standardized coin- operated vending machines in use. 300-400 independent bottlers existed in U.S... A unique selling strategy was employed.

Bottlers employ young women to go door to door offering to install wall mounted bottle openers in kitchens, which in turn boosted sales. These women made about 125 calls a day. 1941 - Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Chicago fills 306 bottles per minute. Carbo-coolers introduced. Portable vending units were introduced. 1953 - "King Size" version of the contour bottle introduction.

1958 - Coca-Cola Bottling Works of Gary, IN fills 400 bottles per minute. International expansion of Coca-Cola system gains strength. 1960 - First 12 ounce can - steel, not aluminum - introduced. 1964 - First lift-top cans introduced. Three new brands debut: TAB, Fresca, Sprite. First computers added at bottling plants.

370 independent Coca-Cola franchise ownerships in the U.S... Glass bottles still primary package. 1982 - Diet Coke introduced. 1985 - Introduction of New Coke. Months later, Coca-Cola Classic was reintroduced. 1986 - Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. was formed.

Consolidation reduces number of independent Coca-Cola franchise ownerships in the U.S. to 180. Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. acquisitions: . 1987 - Portions of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas. 1988 - Miami, Florida, Maryland, Delaware and Memphis, Tennessee 1991 - Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. and Johnston Coca-Cola Bottling Group merge; Summerfield K. Johnston, Jr. becomes CEO 1994 - A PET (polyethylene terephthalate) version of contour bottle launched; such bottles now account for more than half of all CCE volume 1997 - Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. initiates a 3 for 1 stock split of the Company's common shares 1999 - Dasani introduced Fewer than 120 Coca-Cola bottlers exist in the U.S. Fillers now handle more than 2000 cans per minute 2002 - Noncarbonated beverages, such as Dasani, Power Ade, and Minute Maid juice drinks, grow to 12% of CCE's total volume. Fridge Pack introduced, helping consumers keep more 12 oz cans cold in the refrigerator. Vanilla Coke introduced, becomes the most successful new product in 20 years...

Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. key territory acquisitions: . 1993 - First international acquisition: the Netherlands. 1996 - Ouachita Coca-Cola Bottling Co., Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana. 1996 - Belgium and France. 1996 - Coke West, in portions of Montana, Wyoming, North and South Dakota, and Minnesota.

1997 - Great Britain. 1997 - Canada and New York. 1998 - Coke Southwest, including portions of Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. 2001 - July 10, Coca-Cola Enterprises completes the acquisition of Herb Coca-Cola, the third largest United States Coca-Cola bottler, for approximately $1.4 billion.

The territory includes portions of 6 states, including the metropolitan areas of Chicago, IL; Milwaukee, WI; Indianapolis, IN; and Rochester, NY. With this acquisition, Coca-Cola Enterprises now sells approximately 80 percent of The Coca-Cola Company's bottle and can volume in North America.