Current:Home > NewsWhy the price of Coke didn't change for 70 years (classic) -Infinite Profit Zone
Why the price of Coke didn't change for 70 years (classic)
View
Date:2025-04-11 21:07:13
This episode originally ran in 2012.
Prices go up. Occasionally, prices go down. But for 70 years, the price of a bottle of Coca-Cola didn't change. From 1886 until the late 1950s, a bottle of coke cost just a nickel.
On today's show, we find out why. The answer includes a half a million vending machines, a 7.5 cent coin, and a company president who just wanted to get a couple of lawyers out of his office.
This episode was hosted by David Kestenbaum. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.
Help support Planet Money and get bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
Always free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR One or anywhere you get podcasts.
Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.
Music: "I'd Like To Buy The World A Coke" by New Seekers and "Always Coca-Cola" by Joey Diggs
veryGood! (66395)
Related
- Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
- PPP loans cost nearly double what Biden's student debt forgiveness would have. Here's how the programs compare.
- Man recently released from Florida prison confesses to killing pregnant mother and her 6-year-old in 2002
- Police Treating Dakota Access Protesters ‘Like an Enemy on the Battlefield,’ Groups Say
- A South Texas lawmaker’s 15
- Why Kim Cattrall Says Getting Botox and Fillers Isn't a Vanity Thing
- What is the Higher Education Act —and could it still lead to student loan forgiveness?
- Former Exxon Scientists Tell Congress of Oil Giant’s Climate Research Before Exxon Turned to Denial
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- United CEO admits to taking private jet amid U.S. flight woes
Ranking
- Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
- Anxiety Mounts Abroad About Climate Leadership and the Volatile U.S. Election
- Supreme Court takes up case over gun ban for those under domestic violence restraining orders
- The history of Ferris wheels: What goes around comes around
- Mets have visions of grandeur, and a dynasty, with Juan Soto as major catalyst
- War on NOAA? A Climate Denier’s Arrival Raises Fears the Agency’s Climate Mission Is Under Attack
- Why Tom Holland Is Taking a Year-Long Break From Acting
- The Real Reason Kellyanne Conway's 18-Year-Old Daughter Claudia Joined Playboy
Recommendation
Grammy nominee Teddy Swims on love, growth and embracing change
Ahead of the Climate Summit, Environmental Groups Urge Biden to Champion Methane Reductions as a Quick Warming Fix
This week on Sunday Morning (July 2)
Climate Activists Converge on Washington With a Gift and a Warning for Biden and World Leaders
2025 'Doomsday Clock': This is how close we are to self
They're gnot gnats! Swarms of aphids in NYC bugging New Yorkers
Environmental Justice Bill Fails to Pass in California
Helping endangered sea turtles, by air