Pepsi Plans Big Party for 100th Birthday

Pepsi-Cola Co. will celebrate the 100th birthday next year of its namesake cola drink with a hefty increase in advertising and marketing expenses. One birthday present will be a new container for the soft drink. Pepsi-Cola Chief Executive Craig Weatherup declined to say how much more the company will spend on advertising, but Competitive Media Reporting said Pepsi spent $125 million during the first six months of the year--a 23.6% increase from 1996. Weatherup, who spoke to soft drink industry executives in New York, said Pepsi would aggressively compete with Coca-Cola Co. for fountain accounts from restaurants. Analysts expect Pepsi-Cola to roll out a new soda--either an orange or lemon-lime drink--to help boost sales in the non-cola category where it sells Mountain Dew and Slice.