Dr Pepper is a popular caramel-colored, carbonated soft drink marketed in the United States by Dr Pepper/Seven Up, Inc., a unit of Cadbury-Schweppes. The headquarters of Dr Pepper are situated in Plano, Texas, a suburb of Dallas. The ownership of the trademark varies in other countries.
Overview and history
The drink was first sold in Waco, Texas in 1885, and was introduced nationally in the United States at the 1904 World Fair. The exact date of Dr Pepper's conception is unknown, but the US Patent Office recognizes December 1, 1885 as the first time Dr Pepper was served. It is the oldest major soft drink still in heavy production today, although Hires Root Beer and Moxie are actually older. It was formulated by pharmacist Charles Alderton in Morrison's Old Corner Drug Store in Waco, Texas. Apparently uninterested in soft drinks, Alderton gave the formula to the owner of the drug store, Wade Morrison . A popular belief is that the drink was named after Morrison's former employer in Texas, but the factual accuracy of this has been disputed by the Dr Pepper company itself, citing that before moving to Texas, Morrison lived in Virginia near a Dr. Charles T. Pepper, and may have been close to Pepper's daughter at the time. Unlike Coca-Cola and Pepsi, Dr Pepper is not a cola. Allegedly, Dr Pepper's flavor is derived from a mixture of soda fountain flavors popular when the drink was first devised. A partial list of these flavors can be seen at the Dr Pepper museum in Waco, although the formula itself (with its twenty-three ingredients) is a closely-guarded secret. Also, contrary to a popular urban legend, Dr Pepper does not and never has contained prune juice[1]. In Texas, Dr Pepper is extremely competitive in the soft drink market, regularly outselling Pepsi.
In the United States, Dr Pepper/Seven Up, Inc. does not have a complete network of bottlers and distributors, so it is sometimes bottled under contract by Coca-Cola or Pepsi bottlers. In about 30% of the country, the product is distributed by Pepsi bottlers, in about 30% of the country, by Coca-Cola bottlers and in the remainder it is distributed by bottlers that are not affiliated with either of those companies.
In Canada, Cadbury-Schweppes has licensed distribution rights to PepsiCo.
In Germany, Mexico, France, Sweden, The Netherlands, Slovakia, Finland, Austria, The Czech Republic, Belgium, and Norway Cadbury-Schweppes owns the trademark and distributes the product. In all of the other countries of the world, The Coca-Cola Company purchased the trademark from Cadbury-Schweppes and distributes the product. This mixed worldwide ownership of the trademark is due to antitrust regulations which prevented Coca-Cola from purchasing the rights everywhere.
The oldest Dr Pepper bottling plant is in Dublin, Texas. In the 1960s, plant owner Bill Kloster (1918-1999) refused to convert the plant from cane sugar to less expensive corn syrup. Today, the plant is still in operation, and is the only US source for Dr Pepper made with real cane sugar (from Texas-based Imperial Sugar). Dr Pepper of this nature is called Dublin Dr Pepper. Contractual requirements limit the plant's distribution range to a 40-mile radius of Dublin, an area encompassing Stephenville, Tolar, Comanche, and Hico; however, sales to individual customers in non-commercial quantities are allowed, and the plant sells its product over the Internet.
Recently (as of 2003), Dublin Dr Pepper has expanded their shipping and the product is now distributed over most of Texas. Originally, the drink came in 8 fl. oz. glass bottles. Dublin Dr Pepper recently began shipping 12 fl. oz. plastic bottles. Both types of bottles still have the "Imperial Cane Sugar" labels on the front.
The period after "Dr" was discarded for stylistic reasons in the 1950s. Dr Pepper's logo was redesigned and the text in this new logo was slanted. The period made "Dr." look like "Di:". After some debate, the period was removed for good (it had been used on and off in previous logos), as it would also help remove any medical connotation with the product.
Advertising and product placement
The movie Short Circuit had many advertisements for Dr Pepper contained within it, including a notable slogan used by the main protagonist Johnny 5 - "Wouldn't you like to be a pepper too?" Dr Pepper was also featured in both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2.
Dr Pepper's "Be You" advertising campaign centered around commercials featuring popular musicians, including LeAnn Rimes, Reba McEntire, B2K, Smokey Robinson, Patricia Manterola, and Ana Gabriel.
Dr Pepper was introduced to the Australian market in 1997 with TV adverts and low priced half-sized cans, but an unsustained marketing push failed to earn the soft drink widespread acceptance among consumers. Dr Pepper continued to be sold in 1.25 litre plastic bottles until as recently as late 2003, but has since quietly withdrawn from the market.
Dr Pepper slogans
- 1889 - 1914: "King of Beverages."
- 1920s - 1930s: "Drink a Bite to Eat at 10, 2, and 4 o'clock."
- 1950s: "The Friendly Pepper Upper."
- 1960s: "America's Most Misunderstood Soft Drink."
- 1970s: "The Most Original Soft Drink Ever."
- 1977 - 1985: "Be a Pepper.", "Wouldn't you like to Be a Pepper too?"
- 1986 - 1997: "Hold Out For the Out of the Ordinary."
- 1997: "Now's the Time. This is the Place. Dr Pepper Is The Taste."
- 2000: "Dr Pepper, It Makes the World Taste Better."
-
2001: "What's the worst that could happen?" (used in UK and Ireland)
- 2002 - 2004: "Be You."
- 2005 - present: "One Taste & You Get It."
See also
External links
Last updated: 10-29-2005 02:13:46
