Coca-Cola’s Move to Juice Up Sales in Japan: Add a Splash of Booze<br />“While many markets are becoming more like Japan, I think the culture here is still very unique<br />and special, so many products that are born here will stay here.”<br />The term chu-hi is an Japanese amalgamation of the words “highball,” a mixed drink, and “Shochu,” a spirit<br />that can be distilled from rice barley, sweet potatoes and other ingredients.<br />Jorge Garduño, who has led the company’s Japanese division since July, said in an interview on the Coca-Cola website<br />that the chu-hi gambit was “a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market.”<br />Coca-Cola said it had no additional details about the drink, and no plans to offer it in other markets.<br />By TIFFANY HSU and HISAKO UENOMARCH 7, 2018<br />In its 132-year history, Coca-Cola has produced a panoply of drinks alongside its signature soda, including bottled water, juices, sports beverages<br />and an Indian refreshment described as “spicy,” “mature” and “masculine.”<br />This year, the company is mixing in booze.<br />In Japan, a fiercely competitive market where Coca-Cola says it introduces 100 new products<br />each year, the company plans to test a flavored, bubbly drink spiked with alcohol.
