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The Evolution of The Coca

The Coca-Cola contour bottle was first designed in 1915 by Earl R. Dean, inspired by the shape of a cocoa pod. An early prototype was unstable but Dean solved this by decreasing the middle diameter, creating the iconic contour shape still used today. Over the decades, the bottle evolved from glass to plastic while maintaining this signature silhouette, becoming the single most recognizable brand worldwide through its uniquely shaped packaging.

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Jose Peralta
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186 views7 pages

The Evolution of The Coca

The Coca-Cola contour bottle was first designed in 1915 by Earl R. Dean, inspired by the shape of a cocoa pod. An early prototype was unstable but Dean solved this by decreasing the middle diameter, creating the iconic contour shape still used today. Over the decades, the bottle evolved from glass to plastic while maintaining this signature silhouette, becoming the single most recognizable brand worldwide through its uniquely shaped packaging.

Uploaded by

Jose Peralta
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Evolution of the Coca-Cola Contour 

Bottle

This month marks the 94th anniversary of the iconic Coca-Cola coutour bottle. Now, a treasured hallmark, this
single shape of packaging has achieved iconic status since its creation in 1915. The Coca-Cola logo itself is the
single most recognizable brand in the world.

The first bottle was designed in 1915 by the Root Glass Company. The bottle designer, Earl R. Dean and his team
decided to base the bottle design on the soda's two ingredients, the coca leaf or the kola nut. Dean couldn't find any
photographs of either, but became inspired by the cocoa pod, and transformed the shape of the pod into a bottle:

 
The 1915 Coke Bottle: A prototype of the first contour bottle developed by Root Glass Company in 1915. The
prototype never made it to production since its middle diameter was larger than its base, making it unstable on
conveyor belts.

See the evolution of the contour bottle from 1916 to today, after the jump.

 Dean sketched out the design of the bottle, and it was approved for moulding in only 24 hours. A prototype was
made, and the bottle received a patent in November 1915. The prototype never actually made it into production
because its middle diameter was larger than its base, making it unstable on conveyor belts.

Dean solved this issue by decreasing the bottle's middle diameter, and today's contour shape was born:

 
The 1916 Coke Bottle: The patent was renewed on December 25th, 1923, thus creating the "Christmas" bottle. The
bottle has become very popular among collectors. On the base plate, most of these bottles bear the name of the city
where they were first filled.

The 1957 Coke Bottle: In 1957 The Coca-Cola Company decided to eliminate the traditional embossing of its
trademark on the bottle, and replaced it with Coca-Cola in white Applied Color Labeling (ACL). In 1960 the bottle
was registered as a trademark, becoming only the second package in history to be trademarked.

The 1961 Coke Bottle: As the ACL process became more sophisticated, a two color, full wrap label was developed.
The white Coca-Cola trademark on a red background gave the bottle a very colorful appeal. This two color version
was used predominately in the international markets. 1961 also marked the 75th anniversary for Coca-Cola. 
    

Variations of this bottle, and the embossed bottle, were used up all the way until the introduction of the plastic
bottle in 1994. 
   

The classic glass bottle is still available in some areas around the world.
 

1994 Plastic Bottle: In 1994 Coca-Cola introduced the 20oz plastic contour bottle, the Coca-Cola bottle we know
today.
2007 Aluminum Contour Bottles: In 2008, Coca-Cola introduced a contour aluminum can to select markets,
designed by Turner Duckworth.

2008 2L Contour Bottle: In 2008, Coca-Cola introduced a 2L contour bottle to select markets.

Todays Plastic Coke Bottle


 

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