The Other Guy Blinked: How Pepsi Won the Cola Wars

296 Pages·1986·31.647 MB·English

by  Roger Enrico, Jesse Kornbluth

OTHER
HOW
PEPSI
WON
THE
WARS
COLA
ROGER
president&ceo of pepsi-cola
oildJESSE
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IN U.S.
$17.95
INCANADA
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COKEANDPEPSI.THEYWENTEYEBALLTO
EYEBALL FOR87YEARS. PEPSISTEPPED UPTHE
CHALLENGE,ANDTHEN ITHAPPENED...
TH OTHER GUY
E
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BLIIN
HOW PEPSI WON THE COLAWARS
RogerEnricoandJesseKornbluth
Fordecades Pepsi-Colawassuch an underdog
inthe Tola Wars"thatCoca-Cola actually
declined an opportunityto buyout its punyrival
in 1933.
Cutto 1983. EnterRogerEnrico, newpresident
ofPepsi USAattheageofthirty-eight, a straight-
shooting, tough-minded Italian kidfromthe
Midwest. AVietnam veteran, Enrico had risen
fromthetrenchesofsnackfood product
managementtotheexecutivesuite. Now Pepsi
USAwas his responsibility, and hewas
determinedtotake itoverthetop.
InTHE OTHERGUY BLINKEDyouwill
learn howhedidjustthat, rallying an entire
corporationtothe battle. Aftera rockystartas
president, Enricoand his Pepsi Team launched
thefirstin a seriesofadvertising campaignsthat
would carry Pepsi throughthe '80s and beyond.
Itsstarwas Michael Jackson. The industry's
reaction: astonishment.
Bet$5 million—the mostmoneyeverpaid an
entertainerfora commercial—on a shyyoung
manwho sang in a high-pitched voiceand
danced backwards? Bettensofmillionson Diet
Pepsi being thefirst 100% NutraSweetdietcola
onthe market? Bethefirstto putfruitjuice in a
softdrink? Buttheseseeminglycrazy risks-
examplesofwhatEnricocallsleadership
marketing"—paid offand beganto bring a new
generation ofconsumers intothe Pepsi camp.
Pressedtothewall by Pepsi's marketing
coups, a newmanagementteam atCoke made
a shocking decision: theychanged Merchandise
7X, the secretformulathatwasatthe heartof
Coke'ssuccess. In 1985thecompany launched
"NewCoke,"the biggestmarketing blunderofthe
century. Whenthedustsettledthe unthinkable
had occurred: the raceforcola supremacywas
a dead heat.
(Continuedonbackflap)
Digitized by the Internet Archive
2013
in
http://archive.org/details/otherguyblinkedhOOenri_0

THE
OTHER GUY
BLINKED

Roger Enrico
and Jesse Kornbluth
THE
OTHER GUY
BLINKED
How Won
Pepsi
Wars
the Cola
%
BANTAM BOOKS
TORONTO • NEW YORK • LONDON • SYDNEY • AUCKLAND
THEOTHERGUYBLINKED
A Bantam Book INovember 1986
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1986 by RogerEnrico.
This book may not be reproduced in whole or inpart, by
mimeograph or any other means, withoutpermission.
For information address: Bantam Books, Inc.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Enrico, Roger.
The other guy blinked.
1. Pepsi-Cola Compa—ny. 2. Coca-Cola Company.
3. Soft drink industry United States. I. Kornbluth,
Jesse. II. Title.
HD9349.S634P464 1986 338.7'66362'0973 86-17485
ISBN 0-553-05177-6
Publishedsimultaneously in the UnitedStates and Canada
BantamBooksarepublishedbyBantamBooks,Inc.Itstrademark, consistingofthe
words"BantamBooks"andtheportrayalofarooster, isRegisteredin U.S. Patent
and Trademark Office and in othercountries. MarcaRegistrada. BantamBooks,
Inc., 666FifthAvenue, New York, New York 10103.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
0987654321
BP
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vu
CHAPTER 1 "The Surest Move Ever Made" 1
CHAPTER 2 For Those Who Think Young 15
CHAPTER 3 Learning to Lead 28
CHAPTER 4 The 180 Days War 58
CHAPTER 5 Seeking the High Ground 80
CHAPTER 6 Hand In Glove 89
CHAPTER 7 "When You Wish Upon A Star" 103
CHAPTER 8 Take a Message To Michael 121
CHAPTER 9 The Voice of a New Generation 135
CHAPTER 10 Leveling the Playing Field 148
CHAPTER 11 Controlling the Agenda 165
CHAPTER 12 Celebrity Roulette 180
CHAPTER 13 Sweet Revenge 194
CHAPTER 14 "We've Hurt You. We're Sorry" 225
CHAPTER 15 Riding the Wave 242
CHAPTER 16 Clear Sailing 262
INDEX 274
To my dedicated and energetic associates at Pepsi
USA; to BBDO, our immensely creative advertising
agency; and to our partners, the Pepsi bottlers, who
really make it happen.
ToMichaelJackson, without whose talents many of
the events in this book would not have occurred.
And to my wife, Rosemary, and my son, Aaron,
whose inspiration, support and love fuel the engine
every day.