Jul 1, 2011
The Strange Case of Dublin Dr Pepper
I like Dr Pepper. But I LOVE Dublin Dr Pepper.
If you’re not familiar, Dublin Dr Pepper is a version of the soft drink that is made only by a single bottler located in the tiny town of Dublin, Texas. The are the oldest Dr Pepper bottler in the world, and the only bottler that still uses the original Dr Pepper formula and Imperial Pure Cane Sugar. The difference is astounding.
The only problem is that Dublin Dr Pepper is only available for sale within a 44 mile radius of Dublin, Texas.
But then a funny thing happened: Word slowly began to spread about Dublin Dr Pepper, and stores and restaurants from as far away as California started making illicit “Smokey and the Bandit” style trips to Dublin in order to stock up on the stuff. That’s a lot of work for a soft drink, right? That’s how good it is.
Eventually, Dublin Dr Pepper started getting so popular that Dr Pepper bottlers in other territories began to take notice. They weren’t happy to have another Dr on their turf.
So what do the folks at Dr Pepper Snapple HQ do upon discovering this spontaneous groundswell of public appreciation for one of its own products? Why, they sue themselves, of course. Brilliant.
A smart marketing person might notice the popularity of Mountain Dew Throwback and Mexican Coke and think, “hmmm… I think we’ve got something special here. Let’s take it nationwide!”
But instead, the response seems to be, “Let’s sue these guys into oblivion.”
For their part, Dublin Dr Pepper has issued a public response to the lawsuit:
“We are surprised to learn that our corporate partner has taken this action, but we are confident that this lawsuit will not succeed. We have been a loyal partner to Dr Pepper Snapple longer than any other bottler, and we’ve worked successfully with several different ownership groups for our parent company to become one of the company’s most successful franchisees. It is unfortunate that Dr Pepper Snapple’s attorneys are asking our overburdened court system to resolve what we believe is a business matter, but we look forward to telling our side of the story before a judge and jury, and we will continue to provide great products and great service to every one of our customers.”
I sure hope so.
via Gizmodo
