Coke brings back contour bottle
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Thursday June 25, 2015 13:35
The now famous Coca-Cola contour bottle was patented in 1915 by the Root Glass Company of Terre Haute, Indiana and featured in ‘The Gods Must Be Crazy’ movie. Coca Cola Botswana celebrated the brand’s 100th anniversary at Kgalagadi Breweries beer plant in Gaborone recently. According to Coca Cola marketing activation manager Vee Chibanda, in 1915 the company attempted to fend off a host of copycat brands by strengthening their trademark.
She said the company and its bottling partners issued a creative challenge to a handful of U.S. glass companies to develop a bottle so distinct that one would recognise it by feeling it in the dark or lying broken on the ground.
“The Root Glass Company developed the winning design, mimicking the elongated contour shape and distinct ribs of a cocoa bean.
The bottle was patented on Nov 16, 1915 and has since inspired a century’s worth of signature moments in film, social history, design and fine arts,” she explained She said since its creation, the Coca-Cola bottle has achieved iconic status as a symbol of refreshment and upliftment, remaining an important asset for their business to date. Chibanda added that Coca-Cola have started a campaign, which will be executed in over 130 countries. She added that as part of the celebrations, they launched a consumer promotion that started on June 1, 2015 until end of August.
She said the contour bottle was an icon that many could relate with, adding that they tried to remain unique for years and that Coca Cola had been successfully so far. “We have tried to remain unique and we have decided that we cannot do anything except to shoot a similar TV scene where people exchange our contour coke bottle to those near them who seem to be facing difficulties.
“As we know, for years many of us have been sharing Coca Cola to share excitement and comfort loved ones,” she announced.
Coca-Cola has changed promotional billboards and their packaging both in the cans and bottles.
“To mark this milestone, the Coca Cola Company in Botswana is launching a consumer promotion where consumers can collect six yellow closures.They would then enter the promotion and stand a chance to win P500,000 in cash prizes, airtime and shopping vouchers in the lead up to November 16, 2015, which marks the centennial anniversary of the iconic bottle’s patent,” said KBL marketing manager Peo Porogo.
She said throughout the year the company would engage in activations designed to inspire consumers to share and experience happiness across the country through music.
“They would then instantly capture special moments where teens would also have the opportunity to take selfies with some interesting ‘larger than life’ contour props during these activations.
Coca-Cola is celebrating the centennial of its proprietary package in 2015 with a year-long campaign that includes a music anthem and a series of art exhibits featuring works from leading contemporary artists. Nobody Like You is the music anthem for the Coca-Cola bottle campaign from 19-year-old, Canadian singer/songwriter Francesco Yates.
The anthem’s lyrics tell both a traditional love story and serve as an ode to the contour shape of the Coca-Cola bottle and the specialness of shared moments. “Nobody Like You,” can be downloaded on Youtube or Coca Cola website. It now appears on radio and in Coca-Cola TV commercials throughout the year.