Afizz with competition

Coca Cola has operated outside the US since 1897, at first with only marginal competition from Pepsi, and in the process it has become the world’s best-known 1_____. Today Coke outsells Pepsi around 3 to 1 outside the US. The domestic race is closer, with a 41%-32% ratio in Coca-Cola’s favour.

In part, Coca-Cola can thank the US government for its success abroad as During WWII; the USA military built more than 60 Coke bottling plants outside the US to supply American troops. This gave the company leg up in Europe and Asia when the conflict was over.

Pepsi got its international marketing break in 1959 when then chairman Donald Kendall handed Soviet President Nikita Kruschev a bottle of this 2_____ drink as the cameras clicked: that gave the company an entrée into Eastern Europe.

Since the collapse of the Berlin Wall, Coca-Cola has moved swiftly to overcome Pepsi’s 3_____ in Eastern Europe.

Pepsi’s strongest recent showing has been in Mexico where the company reports its 4_____ has jumped from 28% to 33% during the past two years.

Who’s going to get 5_____ from this battle? People the world over will probably drink more of the beverages, as more 6_____ are being built and the products of these two companies are becoming more available. The average American nowadays drinks more soft drinks than water. Non-Americans have a long way to go before they reach that level – and that gives the two giants 7_____ for booming business in the nearest future.

Abridged from Time magazine

Section 3. Company Profile Target questions:

1. What is the typical structure and hierarchy in a company?

2. What is a ‘company profile’?

3. What information should be included in a company profile?

Company profile is a brief outline/short description of a company. Company profile gives such information about a company as name of company, headquarters, chairman, business activities, main markets, sales/turnover, number of employees.

Here is a profile of the MoDo Group:

The MoDo Group is an international company. Its headquarters are in Stockholm. The President and Chief Executive Officer is Bernt Lof. Its main areas of business are fine paper and other wood products. Most of MoDo’s production is carried out in Sweden, but the company is present in many European countries and in the United States. More than 80% of the Group’s total sales of $8.4 million in 2004 came from countries outside Sweden, primarily the European Community. The company has about 12,961 employees.

Activity 1 The Philips Story

Before reading the article about Philips, decide whether these statements are true or false.

1. It is the world’s second biggest electronics company.

2. It has produced over 1000 million TV sets.

3. Its headquarters are in Amsterdam.

4. It was the first company to produce compact discs.

5. It is active in a small number of specialized businesses.

6. It provides the lights for famous landmarks such as London’s Tower bridge.

Read the article and check your answers.