Oct 9, 2020
Coca-Cola is going to discontinue its Zico coconut water brand and may cut other less-popular versions of Coke and Diet Coke. This is a part of the beverage giant’s ongoing efforts to streamline its portfolio to focus on offerings that can achieve a large scale.
Among the other brands that are under review include Diet Coke Feisty Cherry; Coke Life, a lower-calorie version of the cola sweetened with stevia; and regional soda brands such as Northern Neck Ginger Ale and Delaware Punch. Coca-Cola also is planning to end retail-store sales of Hubert’s Lemonade.
Coca-Cola has pledged repeatedly during the pandemic to improve the efficiency of its operations and hone its product offerings to focus on those with the highest demand. While companies such as PepsiCo and Unilever have reduced the products they sell in an effort to prioritize volume and get the most popular items through the supply chain, few have been as outspoken as Coca-Cola when it comes to ending production altogether of some brands.
In the case of Zico, its sales plunged 46% during the same period because Coca-Cola focused on other products in higher demand. As Coca-Cola refines its product assortment, the company also has turned to job cuts to help streamline its business. Coca-Cola in August said it would offer buyouts to about 4,000 employees in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico as part of a broader restructuring. Job cuts could follow depending on how many people accept the buyouts, it said.
Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey has said the company needs to improve how it spends money to innovate and then market the hundreds of brands it sells around the world. By trimming its portfolio, Coca-Cola can move those dollars to its popular flavors in Coke and Diet Coke, or smaller but promising growth brands like Topo Chico. This year alone, Coca-Cola introduced Topo Chico Hard Seltzer that will be manufactured, marketed, and distributed by Molson Coors in the U.S. in 2021.