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Virgin Cola, Sir Richard Branson\u2019s ultimately flawed contender in the Cola Wars, was certainly taken seriously by the competition. On 11th October 1994, a pokerfaced Coca-Cola spokesperson told The Independent: \u201cConsumers consistently demonstrate, when given a free choice, that they prefer our product.\n\u201dDespite an extensive publicity campaign - including a stunt in Times Square, a bottle shaped like Pamela Anderson, and product placement on \u2018Friends\u2019 - the beverage never took off internationally, but did have success in the UK and\xa0Bangladesh, before being discontinued in 2009.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider Coke\u2019s \u2018gangster\u2019 tactics; sympathise with Branson\u2019s children and their classmates; and question why the maverick billionaire just wasn\u2019t able to disrupt the cola market as he\u2019d hoped\u2026\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u2018How Richard Branson Took On Coca-Cola\u2019 (Intrigue Academy, 2020):\xa0https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-PaJkPTQYk\n\u2022 \u2018What Richard Branson learned when Coke put Virgin Cola out of business\u2019 (CNBC, 2017):\xa0https://www.cnbc.com/2017/02/07/what-richard-branson-learned-when-coke-put-virgin-cola-out-of-business.html\n\u2022 \u2018Sir Richard Branson\u2019s setbacks: from Virgin Cola to Virgin Brides\u2019 (The Guardian, 2014):\xa0https://www.theguardian.com/business/2014/oct/06/sir-richard-branson-failures-vigin-cola-brides\nFor bonus material and to support the show, visit\xa0Patreon.com/Retrospectors\nWe'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Emma Corsham.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2021.\n#90s #Food #Person #White #UK\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices