Coca-Cola Seeks Next Billion-Dollar Beverage Among Entrepreneurial And Foreign Brands

Coca-Cola’s in-house product development unit is looking for the company’s next billion-dollar beverage brand among small domestic entrepreneurial brands that show significant sales potential, and among foreign brands that might appeal to American consumers. The best candidates may end up being niche products, and it may take awhile to find and develop them, but that’s okay with Mary-Ann Somers of Coca-Cola’s Venturing and Emerging Brands group. There are only 33 nonalcoholic beverage brands in the billion-dollar sales club – out of 3,000 total brands – so they don’t pop up everyday. “We will develop things that not everybody will like, and that's OK," she said. The strategy partly depends on a two-pronged distribution plan: some brands will be promoted through Coca-Cola's huge distribution system, and some will be marketed by independents.