Marketing is a field full of nonstop action. It’s a dog-eat-dog business, where one needs to be on one's toes 24/7, 365 days a year. In marketing, it’s often said that you must execute a counterplan even before your competitors can think of an offensive.
Many from the present generation may not remember, but in 1975, the then Janata government asked all foreign companies to either reduce their control over Indian companies or exit the country. As a result, many multinational corporations (MNCs) left India, creating a golden era (1975-1991) for Indian homegrown brand dominance. Companies like Bajaj, Ambassador, Thums Up, and Fanta ruled the market during this time.
The liberalization, privatization, and globalization (LPG) policy of 1991 opened India's gates to foreign companies. One of the first to enter was Pepsi, and it was introduced as Lehar Pepsi. The government allowed Pepsi to enter under the condition that it would contribute to India's exports.
To comply, Pepsi strategically entered the agriculture sector while quietly establishing itself in the beverage industry. It didn’t take long for Pepsi to settle in and dominate the market.
But where Pepsi goes,
Coca-Cola was bound to follow. Determined to reclaim its lost ground, Coca-Cola
planned a grand comeback. The company wanted to make a splash, meticulously
preparing for a massive launch campaign. Everything was going according to
plan—until they hit a major roadblock.
Coca-Cola had planned to dominate the front pages of all major newspapers in India on the day of its relaunch. However, Pepsi got wind of Coca-Cola’s strategy through its intelligence network. Acting swiftly and quietly, Pepsi purchased all the front-page advertising space in the leading newspapers before Coca-Cola could book them.
The result? On Coca-Cola’s much-anticipated launch day, October 19, 1993, readers woke up to newspapers filled with Pepsi ads instead. Pepsi had successfully outmanoeuvred Coke, proving that in marketing, timing and strategy are everything. Not only that it was rumoured that Pepsi dealers and bottlers quietly bought up all the reusable glass bottles of Coca-Cola from the market and smashed them. No one knows the truthfulness of this story.
In an industry where glass bottles must be returned to the factory and reused, this below-the-belt tactic from Pepsi severely hampered Coca-Cola’s logistics. As a result, production suffered.
Interestingly, the Indian market has not been very kind to the iconic Coca-Cola brand. Its flagship product, Coke, lags in third place: Sprite (20%), Thums Up (16%), Coke (9%) and Pepsi comes in at 4th with 8%. (Source: Statista).
That must be quite a bitter pill to swallow for Coca-Cola. The only silver lining? Both Sprite and Thums Up are owned by Coca-Cola India, so, at the end of the day, they still dominate the market.
Key words: Cola Wars, Coke vs. Pepsi rivalry, Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi market battle, Soft drink market competition, Pepsi marketing strategy, Coca-Cola business challenges, Pepsi vs. Coke in India, Soft drink industry trends, Top-selling soft drinks in India, Coca-Cola sales decline
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