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A Refreshing Twist on an Atlanta Classic Since 1990, nearly 14 million visitors have toured the World of Coca-Cola in Underground Atlanta, exploring its unrivaled collection of Coca-Cola memorabilia and sampling the many flavors of the Coca-Cola Company’s beverage brands. But though the company continued to grow during the last 17 years, its World of Coca-Cola facility did not, and it quickly became apparent that it would need more space in order to tell the full story. The new World of Coca-Cola hopes to do just that when its doors open on May 24. Located next to the Georgia Aquarium at Pemberton Plaza — named for Dr. John S. Pemberton, the pharmacist who invented Coca-Cola in Atlanta in 1886 — the new World of Coca-Cola will be twice the size of the original facility and will feature a mix of classic favorites and refreshing new exhibits. From Soda Pop to Pop Culture Icon When Pemberton first served Coca-Cola at his small pharmacy soda fountain near Underground Atlanta, he hoped that the drink would be popular with his customers, but he probably had no idea that, more than a century later, his invention would be served over one billion times a day in more than 200 countries around the world. But its popularity as a beverage is only part of the story. Over the years, Coca-Cola has moved beyond the realm of a traditional commercial product to become an integral part of America’s cultural identity. When Coca-Cola decided to change its formula in 1985, the public’s reaction was swift and brutal. Even though the new product performed better in blind taste tests, consumers wanted the original formula back. It wasn’t just a business decision; it was personal. Distributors were ostracized by their friends and co-workers in their communities, thousands of people wrote letters to the company expressing their love for the original product and demanding its return, and Coca-Cola loyalists didn’t suddenly switch to drinking Pepsi — they simply stopped buying soda. Within three months, the company caved to public pressure and reintroduced the original formula to the market, which became known as Coca-Cola Classic. For many people, Coca-Cola is more than just a soda. “Everybody has a story about Coca-Cola and how Coca-Cola has intersected with their lives,” said Phil Mooney, director of the archives department. “People have been sharing those stories with us for years. It may be that a husband and wife met on a first date over a Coke, or it may be a story about being in some far off spot around the world and the only familiar thing that folks saw was a bottle or a can of Coke. We have wonderful stories from the GI’s of WWII who said that Coca-Cola was a symbol for them of what they were fighting for and to get a Coke in Europe or the South Pacific during the war was a very special treat for them.” Refreshing New Exhibits To celebrate the brand’s pervasiveness in society, the new World of Coca-Cola includes a Pop Culture Gallery, complete with a 4D-movie experience called “In Search of the Secret Formula.” In the Portraits section, visitors can read people’s treasured memories formed over a bottle of Coke and share their own stories with the company. Another area displays postcards collected from cities and towns across the United States and even from other countries, all of which have one thing in common: there’s a Coca-Cola sign somewhere in the picture. “It’s just a natural part of the landscape,” Mooney said. Although the Coca-Cola signs just happened to be in the background when the photographer took a picture of the location, other artists actively choose to include Coca-Cola in their work. The Pop Culture Gallery also includes original Norman Rockwell paintings and an exhibit of Andy Warhol’s work from his museum in Pennsylvania, which not only shows his completed artwork but also walks visitors through his artistic process and provides them with a context for how and why he included the Coca-Cola logo and well-known bottle in his work. And before visitors leave, they can try their hand at creating their own piece of pop art.
His creations featuring Santa Claus became so well known that they shaped the image most people think of when they envision jolly old St. Nick today. In the Milestones exhibit, visitors get a glimpse of 10 key elements of the Coca-Cola Company’s history, such as the invention of the script logo that graces all of its cans and bottles. Highlights include a fully restored 1880s soda fountain that was originally used in Toomsboro, Ga., and a 1939 delivery truck from Argentina that was literally driven into the building before the walls were built around it. The museum’s Collector’s Corner, which is set up as the ultimate collector’s room, gives a nod to people who collect Coca-Cola products and memorabilia from around the world, from calendars and Coca-Cola machines to bottles and serving trays. A documentary film tops off the exhibit, sharing the stories of three collectors from America, Asia and Europe and illustrating how the sought-after items vary around the globe: Americans tend to collect older memorabilia since it is so prevalent in the country, especially in the Southeast, while those overseas focus on collecting smaller and more contemporary items, like bottles or souvenir pins from around the world. “We’re a worldwide company, so we would have been remiss if we had just concentrated on things that were here in Atlanta, or even in the United States,” said Jacquie Wansley, marketing manager. “We have a number of our guests who visit us from around the world, and just as everyone has a Coca-Cola story, they need to feel welcome and see some familiar elements when they walk in the door. We wanted to make sure that, especially with this new World of Coca-Cola, we were very inclusive of the places where we do business, which, quite frankly, is every corner of the earth.” Though visitors will recognize a handful of the items from the original facility — Pemberton’s original formula book; the first bottling contract executed by Asa Candler; and the 1950 oil painting that was used for the cover of Time magazine, the first time that a commercial product graced its cover — the bulk of more than 1,000 artifacts that make up the new World of Coke will be on display for the first time. “We’re very proud of the existing World of Coke; it’s a wonderful experience,” said Haven Riviere, vice president and general manager for the new World of Coca-Cola. “But we also believe in the new World of Coca-Cola in that we will speak to visitors in a whole new way. The company has changed significantly and is in the midst of even more change. We celebrated one major brand when the World of Coca-Cola opened its doors. Today, we have more than 400 brands around the world.” Classic Favorites Not only will you see things from around the world, but you can taste them as well since the popular Tasting Experience exhibit will make the transition to the new World of Coke, albeit a new and improved version. In the larger Tasting Experience, visitors can sample more than 70 beverages from around the globe, from coffee, teas, juices and waters to its effervescent varieties. Traveling from continent to continent, visitors can tour the world and taste the difference between the familiar beverages they know and love and those preferred by other cultures. For instance, Beverly, which is popular in Italy, is actually a bitter aperitif that Italians sip throughout their meals to settle their stomachs. “It’s quite a different flavor if you’re not prepared for it when you try it here,” Wansley said. “It doesn’t look like it would taste the way it does. You’d think it would be very innocent, and it’s a jolt to your tastebuds because it’s not something we traditionally have as part of our repertoire here in the United States. It’s a good way for people to startle their friends and family that are traveling with them at the World of Coca-Cola … and to learn a little bit about cultures other than their own.”
“We wanted to make sure that, especially with this new World of Coca-Cola, we were very inclusive of the places where we do business, which, quite frankly, is every corner of the earth.”
Plus, at the new World of Coca-Cola, visitors will have a chance to walk through a working bottling line. “I think it’s one of the most exciting elements of the new World of Coca-Cola, and it’s what people have asked for and we just weren’t able to do it at the existing World of Coca-Cola,” Wansley said. “Since people can’t tour bottling plants like they could years ago, we wanted to bring that experience to the people who actually purchase our products. The bottles that come off this line will be embossed, 8-ounce glass bottles, and one of these bottles will be waiting for each of our guests when they leave our new taste area.” Topping It Off But these classic favorites and refreshing new exhibits represent just a drop in the bottle of what the ne World of Coca-Cola has to offer. Even the gift shop is getting a makeover, with roughly 80 percent of the merchandise being completely redesigned and refabricated to better reflect the company today and its efforts to leave as small of a footprint as possible with the manufacture and distribution of its beverages. For instance, local jewelry designer Kathleen Plate created a whimsical collection of jewelry made from recycled Coke bottles, which is now available in the gift shop. For More Information The World of Coca-Cola
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The New World of Coke
Plus, the area takes a look at how Coca-Cola’s advertising campaigns have influenced popular culture. For instance, Coca-Cola hired artist Haddon Sunbloom to create an advertising campaign for The Saturday Evening Post and National Geographic magazines that would promote the sale of Coca-Cola during the winter.