Company: The Coca-Cola Company

CEO: James Quincey

Year Founded: 1886
Headquarter: Atlanta, USA

STRENGTHS:
1. Strong brand identity – Coca-Cola has a distinctive brand identity and is a very well-
known brand. The history's most popular drinks are its soft drinks.

2. High brand valuation – With a high brand value, Coca-Cola is without a doubt one of
the most well-known brands. Coca-Cola is listed as the sixth best worldwide brand in
2021 by Interbrand, with a brand value of $57 billion.

3. Extended global reach – The company's products are consumed daily in 1.9 billion
servings across more than 200 countries. Over 500 new products have been introduced by
it internationally. Some of these are variations on Coca-Cola drinks, such as Cherry
Coca-Cola and Coco Cola Vanilla. Every lifestyle and demographic are recognized to be
affected by its brands.

4. Greatest brand association and customer loyalty – One of the brands with which
Americans are most emotionally connected is Coca-Cola. This priceless brand is linked
to "happy" and enjoys high consumer loyalty. Customers are able to identify their
distinctive tastes quickly. For them, it is difficult to find alternatives. In addition, Coca-
Cola and Fanta have a much larger fan base than other beverage brands.

5. Dominant market share – The only two major production companies of soft drinks in
the beverage industry are Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and Coca-Cola has the largest market
share. Coke, Sprite, Diet Coke, Fanta, Limca, and Maaza are the Coca-Cola products that
have the highest growth rates.

6. Unparalleled distribution system – The world's largest and most effective distribution
network belongs to Coca-Cola. The company has roughly 900 bottling facilities
worldwide and close to 225 bottling partners.
 7. Acquisitions – A long list of profitable and strategically sound acquisitions by Coca-Cola
includes the Costa coffee chain, Fairlife (Milk Products), Fuze Tea, AdeS, and numerous
others. Coca-Cola increased the variety of ready-to-drink beverages in its portfolio with
these purchases.

8. Repositioning portfolio – The Coca-Cola Company restructured its 400 worldwide

brands and decreased their numbers to 200 brands across five key areas, including:
o Coca Cola
o Sparkling Flavors
o Nutrition, Juice, Dairy & Plant
o Hydration, Sports, Tea & Coffee
o Emerging

WEAKNESSES:
1. Aggressive competition with Pepsi – The primary competitor of Coca-Cola is Pepsi.
Coca-Cola would have been the beverage's undisputed market leader if not for Pepsi.

2. Product diversification – Coca-Cola has a limited range of products. Where Pepsi has
introduced numerous snack products like Lays and Kurkure, Coca-Cola is falling behind.
Pepsi now has the upper hand over Coca-Cola.

3. Health concerns – One of the main sources of sugar consumption is carbonated

beverages. Obesity and diabetes are the two serious health problems it causes. The largest
producer of carbonated beverages is Coca-Cola. The use of these soft drinks has been
outlawed by many health authorities. It is a contentious subject for the business. Coca-
Cola hasn't yet come up with a healthy alternative or fix for this issue, though.

4. Lawsuits – Anytime a company is accused of wrongdoing, trust is damaged. Because it

uses a dispenser that can identify customers and adjust drinks based on their preferences,
Coca-Cola is being sued for patent infringement.
 5. Overdependence on Third-Party Technology Providers – Operations at Coca-Cola
rely heavily on outside parties' technological know-how. Microsoft and the company
agreed to a new five-year contract for the supply of business software.

6. Environmentally Destructive Packaging – Coca-Cola was listed as one of the four top
consumer brands that significantly contribute to global warming and carbon emissions by
using disposable plastic bottles in the 2020 TearFund report.

7. CEO of Coca-Cola Aims to Reduce Cherished Coke Products – James Quincy, the
company's current CEO and a well-known businessman, has recently been deluged with
angry complaints from Coke devotees. The CEO's shocking decision to permanently stop
producing some of the company's most well-liked products has sparked a wave of
complaints. Coca-Cola wants to get rid of well-liked and in-demand goods like the
beloved coconut water Zico, the diet drink Tab, and the smoothie brand Odwalla.

OPPORTUNITIES:
1. Introduce new products and reduce added sugar – Like Pepsi, Coca-Cola has the
chance to expand its product lineup in the healthy beverage and food categories. They can
expand beyond carbonated drinks and increase their revenue and brand recognition as a
result. Coca-Cola has prioritized reducing the amount of sugar in its beverages, and as of
now, 28% of its volume sales have been low- or no-calorie beverages, according to its most
recent annual report.

2. Increase presence in developing nations – There is a high demand for cold beverages in
many hot climates. Consequently, expanding one's presence in these developing markets
can be very beneficial. The Middle East and Africa are two good examples.

3. Bring advanced supply chain system – Supply chain management and logistics are
essential to Coca-operations. Cola's Fuel costs and transportation expenses are continually
rising. Therefore, developing some sophisticated and improved distribution systems could
be a chance.

4. Packaged drinking water – Several packaged drinking water brands, including Kinley,
are owned by Coca-Cola. For Coca-Cola, this market offers a lot of room for growth. To
counteract criticism, there is room to grow and introduce more healthy drinks to the market.
5. Expand through Acquisition – Although some industries provide attractive growth
potential, fast entry into these markets might be difficult. Coca-recent Cola's acquisitions
of Costa Coffee, Aha sparkling water, and it can do it again helped fuel the company's
expansion. It has the financial resources to acquire startups or SMBs in emerging markets
and exploit the numerous opportunities they present.

6. Partners with Constellation Brand – Constellation Brands and one of the largest non-
alcoholic beverage companies in the world collaborate to create alcoholic Fresca cocktails.
In an environment where a few non-alcoholic businesses are diversifying their product
lines, Coca-Cola appears to have made a wise move.

Additionally, both businesses are vying for a larger market share for the highly popular
spirits-based cocktail drinks. After the collaboration was announced, Constellation
Brands' share price increased by 1%.

7. Coca-Cola introduces its very First TikTok challenge across the US – Coca-Cola
launches its first-ever TikTok challenge in the US and enters the TikTok stratosphere. It's
a great move on the part of the business to increase brand recognition.

THREATS:

1. Water usage controversy – Coca-Cola has received a lot of flak for its water
management problem. The company is accused by numerous social and environmental
organizations of using a lot of water in areas where there is a shortage. In addition, it has
been claimed that Coca-Cola pollutes water and mixes pesticides with it to remove
impurities.

2. Pollution Lawsuit – A California environmental organization is suing Coke and three

other businesses for their role in the pollution of the ocean with plastic. Coca-Cola is
singled out in the lawsuit for deceiving the public about the recyclable nature of its single-
use plastic bottles.

3. Direct and indirect competition - Pepsi is a clear direct competitor of Coca-Cola in the
market, but there are many other businesses that do so as well. Coca-position Cola's on the
market may be threatened by its indirect competitors, including Starbucks, Costa Coffee,
Tropicana, Lipton juices, and Nescafe.
 4. Economic Uncertainty – Recent events have had a disastrous impact on many global
companies' revenue streams, supply and distribution networks, and business operations.
Due to the closure of restaurants, theaters, and other businesses that account for about half
of Coca-revenue Cola's in 2020, the company's revenues fell dramatically.

5. Increasing Health-Consciousness – Consumers are choosing healthier lifestyles and

staying away from goods with unhealthy ingredients. As consumers switch to healthier
options provided by rival companies, the rise in health consciousness may result in a
decline in Coca-sales Cola's and profits.

6. Coca-Cola Recalls Sodas and Juices over Possible Contamination – Coca-Cola

announced a recall of its Minute Maid and Coke products due to potential contamination
issues, according to Food Safety News. Reports state that Fruit Punch, Strawberry
Lemonade, and Maid Berry Punch are among the brands that have been recalled.

Metal washers and bolts were discovered to be present in the products. All of the
distributed 59-oz cartons were recalled by the company. Additionally, Coca-Cola recalled
12-oz. coke cans due to potential "foreign contamination."

RECOMMENDATION:

Analyzing a company's internal and external environments with a SWOT analysis is a useful
process. In order to accomplish its goals or meet its objectives, an organization makes use of the
strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats it faces during processes. Opportunities and
threats are external factors that have an impact on a business’s operations, whereas
environmental factors like strengths and weaknesses are internal. Utilizing Coca-Cola as an
example, the study summarizes the company's strengths as brands, service scale, and rapid
revenue growth. Furthermore, flaws entail bad press, sluggish performance, and decreasing
liquidity. On the other hand, business mergers, bottled water, and rapid population increase
create opportunity. Rising degree of rivalry, medical problems, and reliance on bottling
companies are the final aggravating factors.

We could indeed imply that Coca-Cola has a definite position in the marketplace in the
beverage specific consideration on the SWOT analysis of the company that was done previously.
It is advised to implement more novel changes, though. Coca-Cola seems to need to launch new
products in the food and snack market. It ought to provide some answers to the civil activists'
health conscious consumers. enhancing its water distribution system and responding to
environmental governmental organizations' critical comments. Coca-Cola needs to spread out
these goods more. spreading out wrapped in plastic more widely. By focusing on sustainability
and environmental marketing, it can enhance the market perception of its product.

In light of this, it can be said that, despite Coca-Cola's popularity and global recognition,
there is more scope for further improvement. The progression of the core businesses, where it
presumes the manufacturing capacity of healthy drinks, is by far the most important area that
requires immediate medical attention if strategic human resource management is to be improved.
Aside from resolving the water management issues, it is crucial to take action to outnumber the
business's primary opponent, Pepsi.

The business could perhaps give top priority to improving its sustainability marketing system,
which is another important task. It needs to acknowledge all of these negative issues as quick as
practicable to avoid more deep problems like losing consumers' trust and declining profits.