Current:Home > MyWhy the price of Coke didn't change for 70 years (classic) -ValueCore
Why the price of Coke didn't change for 70 years (classic)
View
Date:2025-04-18 04:06:15
This episode originally ran in 2012.
Prices go up. Occasionally, prices go down. But for 70 years, the price of a bottle of Coca-Cola didn't change. From 1886 until the late 1950s, a bottle of coke cost just a nickel.
On today's show, we find out why. The answer includes a half a million vending machines, a 7.5 cent coin, and a company president who just wanted to get a couple of lawyers out of his office.
This episode was hosted by David Kestenbaum. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.
Help support Planet Money and get bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
Always free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, NPR One or anywhere you get podcasts.
Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.
Music: "I'd Like To Buy The World A Coke" by New Seekers and "Always Coca-Cola" by Joey Diggs
veryGood! (44221)
Related
- Meta donates $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund
- Maine mass shooter was alive for most of massive 2-day search, autopsy suggests
- Over 4,000 baby loungers sold on Amazon recalled over suffocation, entrapment concerns
- Jason Aldean says he stands by controversial Try That in a Small Town: I know what the intentions were
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- Arizona judge charged with extreme DUI in March steps down
- NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race: Start time, TV, streaming, lineup for Phoenix
- Italian archaeologists open 2,600-year-old tomb for first time, find wealthy family's treasures
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom's Daughter Daisy Dove Is in Full Bloom at Her First Public Appearance
Ranking
- Travis Hunter, the 2
- Some houses are being built to stand up to hurricanes and sharply cut emissions, too
- Afghans fleeing Pakistan lack water, food and shelter once they cross the border, aid groups say
- Find Out Which Real Housewife Is the Only One to Have Met Andy Cohen’s Daughter Lucy
- US wholesale inflation accelerated in November in sign that some price pressures remain elevated
- A nonbinary marathoner's fight to change anti-doping policy
- Still swirling in winds of controversy, trainer Bob Baffert resolved to 'keep the noise out'
- Chiefs want to be ‘world’s team’ by going global with star power and Super Bowl success
Recommendation
Buckingham Palace staff under investigation for 'bar brawl'
Save 42% on That Vitamix Blender You've Had on Your Wishlist Forever
Virginia school board elections face a pivotal moment as a cozy corner of democracy turns toxic
Boy killed in Cincinnati shooting that wounded 5 others, some juveniles, police say
Small twin
Record-setting A.J. Brown is colossal problem Cowboys must solve to beat Eagles
The Israel-Hamas war has not quashed their compassion, their empathy, their hope
Tola sets NYC Marathon course record to win men’s race; Hellen Obiri of Kenya takes women’s title