In the 1980s Coca-Cola was losing market share to its rival Pepsi at an alarming rate. Blind taste tests performed by Coke even showed that consumers seemed to prefer Pepsi’s sweeter flavor. So in 1985 the Atlanta-based company scrapped its classic formula in favor of a sugary but smooth cola that came to be known as “New Coke.” The change shocked soda lovers across the country, prompting boycotts and letter-writing campaigns that did significant damage to Coke’s brand image. After Continue reading

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In recent years retailers both large and small have struggled to compete against the low prices and convenience offered by e-commerce outlets. But even as Amazon disrupted all sorts of stores over the last decade, supermarkets such as Kroger managed to survive and thrive. Along with the troubles of delivering fresh produce, online retailers couldn’t convince customers to buy their food sight-unseen.

That is until startups like Instacart made grocery delivery more accessible to the average consumer. Although online purchases Continue reading

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April 18, 2019

The grocery chain Stop & Shop began in 1892 as a small store in Boston’s North End neighborhood. Since then the company has expanded to more than 450 locations throughout the Northeastern United States. Last Thursday, however, operations at many of those stores were thrown off course as more than 31,000 Stop & Shop employees went on strike. After negotiations over a new contract reached a stalemate, members of five local United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) unions walked out Continue reading

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March 5, 2019

A few weeks ago, PepsiCo announced the annual results of what turned out to be a very profitable year. The beverage and snack giant saw revenues increase 1.8 percent to a whopping $64.4 billion, resulting in a profit of $12.6 billion. On top of this 158 percent increase in annual profit, Pepsi also predicted organic growth at a rate of 4 percent for the coming fiscal year.

But while the company had plenty of good news in store for investors, Continue reading

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March 1, 2019

Red Bull has grown into one of the world’s most powerful beverage brands thanks in no small part to its innovative approach to marketing. This video takes a close look at the Austrian company’s trailblazing sponsorship of extreme sports events and how the Red Bull brand is about a lot more than just selling energy drinks.

Questions:

  1. Why did Red Bull choose to sponsor extreme sports events rather than well-known leagues like the NFL or NBA?  
  2. How did Red Continue reading
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February 21, 2019

Since its founding in 1995, the Colorado-based chain Illegal Pete’s has expanded to 11 locations throughout the state thanks to its delicious Mission-style burritos. According to founder Pete Turner, though, the company’s employees have played just as vital of a role in its success story. So in 2011 he decided to show his appreciation by gradually raising wages across the board. “After 15 years, we were able to look forward and say, ‘What do we want this business to look Continue reading

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February 12, 2019

With its signature stack of three buns and two beef patties covered in special sauce, there are few fast food items as famous as the Big Mac. That’s why over the years McDonald’s has tried to protect its flagship burger by pursuing legal action against any possible imitators. One of the company’s latest targets was Supermac’s, an Irish chain that sold a suspiciously similar sandwich called the Mighty Mac. Unfortunately for McDonald’s, though, this particular case didn’t go exactly as Continue reading

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February 8, 2019

Sorry, candy lovers, but today we’ve got more bad news. Not only will millions of Americans soon be forced to spend Valentine’s Day without their SweetHearts, but there’s also something wrong with the nation’s supply of Hershey’s Kisses. While the chocolate treats will still be available for next week’s big day, they’ll be missing one of their most distinctive features: the tips. Since December consumers have been puzzled by the tips’ absence, fearing that Hershey had changed the candy’s Continue reading

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January 10, 2019

For thousands of years, people have been baking bread by largely following the same procedure: dough is kneaded into a loaf and then placed in a hot oven until it’s done. And while this may sound simple enough, baking a perfect loaf of bread actually requires a great deal of skill and years of experience. That is unless you have a BreadBot, a new machine that automates nearly every aspect of the baking process.

Recently unveiled at the annual Consumer Continue reading

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November 20, 2018

With Thanksgiving only a couple of days away, America’s grocery stores will soon be flooded with consumers looking to pick up a few last minute ingredients. And while these time-crunched cooks will likely spend a long time waiting in the checkout line, they at least won’t be greeted with a steep bill once they reach the register. That’s because the American Farm Bureau Federation said that this year’s average price for a Thanksgiving dinner has dropped slightly in comparison to Continue reading

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