Coke, Pepsi, A-B Attracted to Metal

Coke joins Budweiser, PepsiCo and a small handful of other beverage makers who are embracing this cutting edge form of packaging.

17/12/07 Coca-Cola’s iconic contour bottle is getting a new metal attitude. The cola giant, next year, will begin testing Coke and Coke Zero products in aluminum bottles.

Coke joins Budweiser, PepsiCo and a small handful of other beverage makers who are embracing this cutting edge form of packaging.

Aluminum bottles offer enhanced graphic capabilities and the ability to keep beverages colder, albeit at a cost. They cost roughly three times that of glass.

But, the premium packaging has its benefits. "The bottles stay colder longer and look cool as hell," said Michael Sands, the former Snapple CMO who was the first to introduce an aluminum bottle in the U.S. Mistic Re Energy launched in 2002 and Snapple Elements followed in 2003.

For Coke, the new 8-oz. packaging is symbolic of the company’s refined focus on its core identity, per sources. There is nothing on the bottle except for an oversized trademark (and the fine print, of course). Turner Duckworth, San Francisco, handles.

"It takes everything that is Coke and makes it fresh and new by simplifying it," said a source.

The new bottles will first be seeded at high-profile events and clubs in markets such as Atlanta and Philadelphia.

Coca-Cola also launched its new Caribou Coffee line in 12-oz. Alumi-Tek bottles in August. Coke declined comment.

While Coke is scaling back the graphics on its bottles, Mountain Dew will splash six new designs on its ornate Green Label Art series of aluminum bottles beginning Jan. 28. Created by contemporary artists, the limited edition bottles will be available at retail for the first time.

In May, Mountain Dew became the first U.S. carbonated soft drink available in an aluminum bottle (both of the Snapple drinks were sans bubbles). The original 12 designs were only available at events and through sweepstakes and influencer mailings.

“We got such a great response on the Web site, blogs, at events and in the media that we felt we were onto something big and powerful,” said Marisol Tamaro, senior marketing manager for PepsiCo-owned Mountain Dew.

Next week, Greenlabelart.com will begin a countdown until the launch of the new designs. A 16-oz. bottle will cost $1.99 versus $1.19 for a regular 20-oz. plastic bottle. The new bottles (several hundred thousands of which will be offered) will be touted online, via wild postings and print advertising.

A second set of six limited edition bottles will be available at retail in August 2008. Seed Gives Life, New York, handles advertising for the Green Label Arts initiative.

Budweiser is credited for being the first company to offer aluminum bottle products en masse in America in 2005. Budweiser, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra are among the A-B brands to launch in the “bottlecan.” (The word is a literal translation from the Japanese, who first created the packaging in 2000 as an answer to that country’s backlash to PET bottles.)

"Our consumers are always looking for new products and innovation from Anheuser-Busch, [and] the aluminum bottle allowed us to deliver that,” said Keith Levy, vp-brand management at A-B in St. Louis.

Sales of beer in the aluminum bottles spiked 33% in 2007, he said.

For A-B, which had been struggling to find its role within the cocktail culture, the sleek looking bottles “allowed it to be accepted in occasions dominated by hard liquor like in the high-end club scene,” Levy said. “Mixed drinks in general are about fashion. The bottles have that element of style.”

This access comes at a cost. “Keeping it at the same [price point] makes it hard to make money. That’s OK. To us the image, style and innovation is worth the marketing investment,” said Levy.

CCL, Hermitage, Pa., produced the Snapple bottles as well as the current Mountain Dew and Iron City beer bottles.

Ed Martin, CCL’s vp-sales and marketing, said because of the cost of the bottles, “I don’t see us competing with other forms of packaging. It’s not about unit cost. It’s a marketing tool. It’s more like marketers saying, ‘Should we buy another print ad or a TV commercial’ [or invest in the aluminum bottles].”

Other companies are starting to make the investment as well. Miller Chill will be available in an aluminum bottle in the spring. Dos Equis has one in Mexico and “there are lots of energy drink projects that haven’t hit yet, but they are being looked at very hard,” said Martin.

A-B, meanwhile, continues to innovate on its packaging. It rolled out “Chill Chambers” at stadiums, Applebee’s, Hooters and other locations to keep the aluminum bottles at a chilly 22 degrees.

“Glass would explode,” said Levy. “The chill chamber just blows out more of a key benefit consumers are looking for from beer.”