Coca-cola Bottles Make It Easy To Hold The Real Thing

The collector of soft-drink related collectibles usually gravitates toward the large group of Coca-Cola items available for collecting. Bottles and even cans make great additions to their collections. Coca-Cola is a well-known brand all throughout the world, and their bottle shape and signature logo are recognized by people of all ages and locations. In fact, little about them has changed since their debut on the market in 1916.

The brand recognition of Coke is so strong that when some people say it, it can mean any type soft drink at all. The company may not be pleased with other brands being referred to as their copyright, but it shows how successful their brand is.

Coca-Cola bottles appeared some time after the Atlanta, GA druggist John Pemberton whipped up the first batch in 1886, and sold it for five cents per glass at the soda fountain in his pharmacy. The familiar name signature is a copy of the exact handwriting of his accountant, Frank Robinson. Records indicate that Robinson is the one who actually picked the name as well. In 1884, a man named Joseph Biedenharn sent the company marketer samples of bottles sodas, but it took five years before these were sold commercially.

Although imitation is called the sincerest form of flattery, similarity of a competitor product can hurt sales in business. A company once wanted a bottle for the "real thing" that was so distinctive, that customers would be sure that they had the right product just from holding the bottle. There was once a contest held to help identify a bottle that was distinctive in the darkness or when someone was blindfolded. The curvy nature of the now well-known Coca-Cola bottle was the clear winner.

While the basic contour of Coca-Cola bottles has remained, it has been refined several times for various reasons. The first was a practical one. The first contour bottles were wider in their middle section than they are now, and were not very steady on conveyor belts. They had to be made thinner to prevent tipping, but most people think the appearance is also more balanced and attractive.

When the plastic 20-ounce bottles were introduced for use in vending machines, slight variations in design were required. Also, large sized bottles such as two- and three-liter family size bottles of Coca-Cola, could not carry the same signature contoured look on technical grounds. However, even without the standard shape, collectors get excited when they find old bottles of Coca-Cola products.