Coca-Cola is stopping the sale of its new flavor, Coca-Cola Spiced, just six months after it hit the shelves. The drink didn't sell well and didn't make people excited like the company had hoped.
Coca-Cola Spiced was supposed to be a long-lasting flavor, but it is being removed because people didn't like it as much as expected. Coca-Cola is making this change to keep up with what customers want in a market full of drinks.
Coca-Cola to Discontinue Spiced Flavor
Coca-Cola shared the news with CBS MoneyWatch, explaining that the company is always looking at what people like and adjusting its products. "We're always looking at what our customers like and adjusting our range of products," said a spokesperson.
Coca-Cola Spiced was a new version of the classic Coca-Cola, mixing the regular Coke taste with raspberry and spice flavors. But even though the name suggested it would be spicy, it wasn't.
Many people were confused by this and didn't like the flavor. They expected something spicier, and when it turned out to be a raspberry-flavored Coke, they were disappointed.
The drink was priced at $1 for a can or $2.20 for a larger 20oz bottle. It was aimed at younger customers, especially people from Generation Z, who like trying new and bolder flavors.
However, the way Coca-Cola Spiced was advertised didn't match what people expected, and this caused the drink to sell poorly and get bad reviews.
Many customers said the flavor was strange and didn't meet their expectations. They pointed out that it wasn't spicy at all and didn't think the combination of flavors tasted right.
This mismatch between what people thought they were getting and what the drink actually tasted like led to its failure in a market where there are lots of other drink options.
As more people choose these new drinks, Coca-Cola has been trying out different flavors to stay popular as the company faces tough competition from newer brands like Olipop, Poppi, and Culture Pop, which market themselves as healthier sodas. These drinks are especially popular with younger people who are looking for drinks that seem better for them.
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Coca-Cola's Limited Edition Flavors
Coca-Cola often comes out with limited-edition flavors like Coca-Cola Marshmello, which was a special version made with the Grammy-nominated artist Marshmello, and Coca-Cola Oreo. While some of these drinks were liked by people, Coca-Cola Spiced didn't do as well and is being taken off the shelves.
Coca-Cola Spiced is not the only drink being discontinued. Cherry Vanilla, which was released in 2020, and Diet Coke with Splenda are also being removed as Coca-Cola makes room for new flavors.
This is not the first time Coca-Cola has had trouble attracting younger customers. In 2022, the company teamed up with DJ Marshmello to make a new flavor, but many people thought it didn't taste anything like marshmallows, and it didn't become very popular.
According to MailOnline, this drink was part of a special line of flavors called Creations, which also included Dreamworld, Starlight, and Byte. These drinks were meant to be unique, but they didn't catch on with customers.
Even though Coca-Cola Spiced didn't work out, Coca-Cola is still the biggest soda company in the US and the world.
In the US, it controls nearly 20% of the $97 billion soda market. Dr Pepper has now passed Pepsi, with Dr Pepper holding 8.34% of the market and Pepsi at 8.31%.
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