It might not be so well known today, but the Coca-Cola vs. Pepsi war was based in part by a huge price differential. You can hear this in old radio jingles - Coke was sold in 6oz bottles and Pepsi was sold in 12oz bottles, a substantial savings.
When did they stop doing this? I’ve tried looking this up on the intertubes without success.
This has a historical timeline with photos, including the doubling in volume that you mentioned [1933-1934].
Business Insider article on Coke vs Pepsi
From Coke’s website, they say that in 1955, Coke saw the debut of their King Size bottles, 10- and 12-oz, as well as a family size of 26-oz. During WW2, materials weren’t readily available for cans, but in 1960, 12-oz cans of Coke were introduced.
during WW2 when Pepsi almost went out of business because they couldn’t get sugar and lost their butt in the futures markets
Coke didn’t have to worry about this as it had straight out bribed key members of the congressional committee that controlled the sugar rationing
Now according to legend this si also around the time that Pepsi offered itself for sale to Coke and the CEO laughed in their faces saying Pepsi was too insignificant to bother … it lit a fire under Pepsi management and started the “cola wars” when rationing ended
Yeah, I guess it’s sort of a “six of one, half a dozen of the other”, but when did they equalize price and/or quantity? Maybe 1955 when Coca-Cola offered 12 oz bottles, apparently.
When I was a kid, our family wasn’t poor by any stretch but monetary inflation was felt by everyone. Soda was “store brand” knock-offs. If Pepsi was half the price during the “Depression” years, when money was tight I could see Coke having a tough time competing.
NPR Planet Money did an article on this. Summary is that there were two factors: 1) A super-long term contract for bottling rights, that held the cost of a ~6-oz bottle at 5 cents for approximately 70 years, and 2) vending machines that only took nickels.
I still recall the jingle: Pepsi-cola hits the spot; 12 full ounces, that’s a lot. I always got Pepsi because I got twice as much. I can’t recall the last time I bought a cola.
Be sociable …
Look smart
Keep up to date
With Pepsi
Stay young
And fair
And debonair
Be sociable
Have a Pepsi!****
“Twice as Much for a Nickel" was Pepsi’s slogan from 1939-1950 when it was briefly changed to “More bounce for the ounce” and then “Any Weather is Pepsi Weather". So, 1950 was probably the last year their advertising boasted about any price or volume differential.