Jacquie Russo
Staff Writer
It’s official, Pepsi is no longer sold at California State University, Bakersfield. On Oct. 11,2013 CSUB signed a partnership with Coca-Cola to be the sole beverage provider on campus.
Coca-Cola brings many resources to CSUB; it ranks 57 on Fortune 500’s 2013 list of largest companies with revenue of $48 billion and profits exceeding $9 billion, according to money.cnn.com. This partnership is contracted to last for seven years with the option for one or three more years thereafter.
This means no brand, including Pepsi, may be sold on campus or at school events other than Coca-Cola products. Coca-Cola’s many products include Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Fuze Tea, Minute Maid, PowerAde, Dasani water and Glacéau Smartwater.
Michael Chavez, CSUB Director of Contract Services and Procurement, said that Coca-Cola and Pepsi were both invited to CSUB to determine which company would best benefit the campus. Chavez said even though the campus has a positive relationship with Pepsi, Coca-Cola brought more to the table.
Coca-Cola is providing the school with $5,000 for an athletics video board, as well as donating cases of free beverages in support of campus clubs. Clubs will then be able to request to sell the product to assist in their fundraising.
Another big perk Coca-Cola has offered is an internship program. A single internship has been offered so far, but the school hopes to gain two more, said Chavez.
The change of products has pleased many people on campus. Junior Kayla Bailey, communications major, loves Coca-Cola and even said she is a “Coca-Cola connoisseur”. Bailey has worked at the Runner Café for a year and said, “a lot of people come through lines and say they are happy with the options (provided by) the Coca-Cola products.”
Bailey said, “Coca-Cola products have more range (compared to) Pepsi; there were not many options with Pepsi, so people are happier with Coca-Cola.”
According to both Coca-Cola and Pepsi websites both beverage providers have a similar variety though. For example, onstead of Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid, PowerAde and Fuze Tea, Pepsi has Tropicana, Gatorade and Lipton Tea. Of course, with any change, not everyone is pleased. Bailey said one customer told her about a debate in her office over Pepsi and Coke. The consensus was that they missed Pepsi.
Kaitlyn Rogers, a freshman psychology major, is a Pepsi fan. Rogers said, the partnership “really sucks, because I really don’t like Coke.”The change will obviously mean a period of adjustment for many, but in the end the decision was not based on taste tests or personal opinion. The scholarships and the internship provided the deciding factors in choosing Coca-Cola as CSUB’s brand of choice.
