John S. Pemberton: The Drink Of Coca-Cola

The drink, Coca-Cola, originated in 1885 as Pemberton’s French Wine Coca, consisting of “an extract from the leaf of Peruvian Coca, the purest wine, and the Kola nut” according to it’s creator, John S. Pemberton, a former Columbus, GA resident, Civil War veteran, and “the most noted physician Atlanta ever had” according to the Atlanta newspaper. (Georgia Encyclopedia) Pemberton initially marketed this product as a medicine, saying “it is the most excellent of all tonics, assisting digestion, imparting energy to the organs of respiration, and strengthening the muscular and nervous systems.” and sold it as such for five cents per glass in his Atlanta drugstore. In 1886, Atlanta introduced prohibition, which prompted Pemberton to substitute sugar syrup for the wine (Georgia Encyclopedia), thus essentially creating one of the first, and presumably most powerful, energy drinks consisting purely of cocaine (extract of coca leaf), caffeine (Kola nut), and sugar. It

(Georgia Info) It was Asa Candler’s business and marketing expertise which allowed him to expand the little-known locally distributed drink into a widely celebrated multimillion dollar corporation. One of his early business strategies was the creation of the first coupon and direct mail campaign in 1887. (RetailMeNot) According to Charlie Brown, Vice President of Marketing at NHC, “[Coca-Cola would] offer pharmacists two gallons of Coke syrup in return for the names and addresses of consumers who lived near that pharmacy, and they’d direct mail the coupon to the consumer. It was a classic new strategy. Consumers would get this thing in the mail for a free glass and of course try it, and the pharmacist would keep buying the syrup.”