Caffeine and nicotine … when there’s a lot of stress and anxiety in the air, you can expect more of these drugs to be flowing through the collective bloodstream. So it’s not a surprise that Coca-Cola has come up with a clever (some might say devious) marketing partnership to take advantage of Japan’s anxiety.
Coca-Cola’s Georgia canned coffee, the top seller in the market and basically positioned as the working man’s brand, has been appearing on shelves in combo packages with a pack or two of cigarettes. First it was Georgia and Phillip Morris brands in the AM PM chain of convenience stores. And now, with British American Tobacco, even the package color and design schemes match, enhancing the co-branded feel.
It’s too early to tell whether this effort is a success and something that will be around for a while, but it looks like a win-win for both Georgia and the cigarette brand partner. Georgia strengthens its working man image among a consumer segment that probably has the highest proportion of smokers. And the ever-assailed cigarette brand finds a new sales channel, and in a combination that’s as logical for most smokers as peanut butter and jelly.
