Coca-Cola is hoping a failed product from the 1980s will go viral in 2019.
The company is bringing back a limited number of New Coke cans in honor of the upcoming third season of “Stranger Things,” in which the product is featured.
“Stranger Things” creators Ross and Matt Duffers came up with the idea to bring New Coke back as a way to promote the show, which will start streaming on Netflix on July 4.
The third season of the show takes place during the summer of 1985 — when Coca-Cola introduced a new recipe for its iconic beverage. So-called New Coke was a flop: Consumers reacted so poorly to the new drink that Coca-Cola pulled it from shelves after a few months.
Bringing New Coke back is a way for Coca-Cola to “not take ourselves too seriously,” Stuart Kronauge, president of Coke’s sparkling business unit and senior vice president of marketing for Coca-Cola North America, told CNN Business. And it wasn’t easy to re-create the product: Coca-Cola had to dig through its vault to recover the recipe.
“Maybe a while ago we wouldn’t have done this,” Kronauge said. “But we’re changing and trying to innovate in ways that are beyond traditional new products.”
“Buying a 30-second ad to drop into a certain time-frame is not as valuable as it once was,” Kronauge added.
There are three ways for customers to get the retro product: As a gift when they buy “Stranger Things” Coke and Coke Zero Sugar glass bottles online starting Thursday; through “Stranger Things” pop up vending machines; or as a giveaway when they purchase a gift or ticket at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta. Coca-Cola has produced fewer than 500,000 of the New Coke 12-ounce cans, and expects to run out quickly.
The company is also selling “Stranger Things” themed cans of regular Coke and Coke Zero Sugar, and is releasing a remake of a 1980s ad featuring characters from the show.
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