Ozarks Coca-Cola heads up federal suit

The injunction comes on the heels of a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Springfield’s U.S. District Court against Atlanta-based The Coca-Cola Co. and Cobb County, Ga.-based Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc.

The suit alleges both companies devised a plan to begin warehouse delivery of Coca-Cola’s PowerAde sports drink to retailers such as Wal-Mart beginning April 1 – a change from the direct store delivery method that has been in place for more than 100 years.

Bottlers say the direct contact between the manufacturer and the customer has been the driving force behind PowerAde’s success.

Volume of PowerAde at Ozarks Coca-Cola Bottling grew by 60 percent in 2005, say company officials, and the sports drink’s sales volume doubled between 2000 and 2004.

“The direct store delivery is the best way we know to develop the PowerAde brand,” said Sally Hargis, vice president of corporate strategy at Ozarks Coca-Cola Bottling. “It makes the brand more profitable for our customers.”

Hargis said the local bottler and its fellow plaintiffs are arguing that a contractual agreement made with Coca-Cola Enterprises in 1994 prevents warehouse delivery.

The lawsuit seeks a preliminary injunction to stop PowerAde warehouse delivery plans until the legal action is resolved.

This is the first major legal action taken by a majority of independent Coca-Cola bottlers against The Coca-Cola Co. in more than 80 years.

Though Hargis said warehouse delivery would have an effect on the success of PowerAde, it is not expected to affect local delivery or trucking employment.

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