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Acquired
Coca-Cola
Acquired

Coca-Cola

Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal 4h 4m 4 months ago
Every company has a story. Learn the playbooks that built the world’s greatest companies — and how you can apply them.
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Show Notes

Coca-Cola is… sugar water. And somehow it’s also America, Christmas, summertime, friendship and happiness. Today we tell the story of how The Coca-Cola Company amazingly transmogrified a beverage into emotion in all of our collective psyches, and ALSO built one of the most incredible scale economy businesses of all-time. And oh yeah, there’s also cocaine, WW2, Mad Men, Warren Buffett, James Dean, Bill Cosby, Michael Jackson, Michael Ovitz, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, McDonald’s and Monsanto. So cozy up to the fire with your favorite images of Santa Claus and Polar Bears and enjoy an ice-cold episode of Acquired — always delicious, always refreshing.
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Many thanks to our fantastic Fall ‘25 Season partners:
J.P. Morgan Payments
WorkOS
Shopify
Sentry — Link to ACQ Cassette Players, use code “audiophile”
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The Hilltop ad / Mad Men finale
Pepsi Challenge commercials
Pepsi’s Michael Jackson commercials
Coke’s Bill Cosby commercials
Two liter bottles inflating
Worldly Partners’ Multi-Decade Coca-Cola Study
For God, Country, and Coca-Cola
Secret Formula
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Carve Outs:
SkiErg
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Claude
Nike Vomero Plus
Hermanos Gutiérrez
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‍Note: Acquired hosts and guests may hold assets discussed in this episode. This podcast is not investment advice, and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. You should do your own research and make your own independent decisions when considering any financial transactions.

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