Coca-Cola Signature Mixers as retro packaging

Target group: Millennials, destination: Fashionable bars, target drink: Cuba Libre. Coca-Cola is supplying an exclusive premium line to bars in Britain that draws on the design of the original Hutchinson bottle as its model. The US company is now also catering to the booming demand for bar lemonades with a total of four Signature Mixers that feature matching retro packaging.

COCA-COLA HUTCHINSON BOTTLE

Soft drink giant Coca-Cola joined forces with renowned bartenders to develop its new ‘Signature Mixers’ product line. A total of four stylish drinks bottles that are based on the retro packaging that dates back to 1899 were created to encourage mixing with such dark spirits as whisky and rum. The retro packaging is being reintroduced after more than 100 years for the ‘Signature Mixtures’ product line to boost sales of Coca-Cola-based long drinks and at the same time satisfy consumer demand for stylish retro editions.

The soft-drinks company has not changed its recipe for Coca-Cola often over the course of its history – it did so for the first time in 1985 and faced so much resistance to the new taste that it was forced to return to bottling the old formula after just three months. But the packaging for Coca-Cola has been adapted to contemporary trends several times – for example, to the retro trend – the colour and lettering, however, have remained true to their origins and so to this day guarantee that customers are able to recognise the product straight away.

What is new is the idea behind the current market launch: The four Signature Mixers were developed specifically for mixing with alcohol and are intended to compete with gin-and-tonic in bars. It was precisely for this reason that the company worked with some of the best known bartenders in the world: They created the versions with smoky, spicy, herbal and woody notes by adding natural aromas as their own or joint ideas. The developers say that the dark, tart flavour versions are particularly good for mixing classic long drinks with rum and whiskey. Exclusively available in bars in Britain for the time being, it is not yet clear when and if the special cola mixes are going to be marketed in other countries.