Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated Announces Closing of Transaction to Expand Franchise Territory
31 January 2015 - 08:10AM
Business Wire
- Territory includes Cleveland and
Cookeville, Tennessee
- Additional phase of
previously-announced franchise territory expansion
Coca-Cola Bottling Co. Consolidated (NASDAQ: COKE), the nation’s
largest independent Coca-Cola bottler, today announced it has
closed its previously disclosed agreement with The Coca-Cola
Company to expand the bottler’s franchise territory to include
Cleveland and Cookeville, TN. This closing represents an additional
phase of the proposed franchise territory expansion described in
the previously-announced Letter of Intent between the Company and
The Coca-Cola Company.
As previously disclosed, the Company has signed definitive
agreements with The Coca-Cola Company to exchange the bottler’s
franchise territory in Jackson, TN for territory currently served
by Coca-Cola Refreshments USA, Inc. (CCR), a wholly-owned
subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company, in Lexington, KY and to expand
the bottler’s franchise territory to include Louisville, KY and
Evansville, IN. The Company is continuing to work towards a
definitive agreement with The Coca-Cola Company for the remainder
of the proposed franchise territory expansion described in the
previously-announced Letter of Intent, including Paducah and
Pikeville, KY.
Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Coca-Cola Consolidated is the
nation’s largest independent Coca-Cola bottler with franchise
territories in 11 states. The Company’s current major markets
include: Charlotte, Raleigh, Wilmington, Greenville, the Triad, and
Asheville in NC; Greenville, Columbia, and Charleston in SC;
Charleston, Beckley, and Parkersburg in WV; Roanoke and Bristol in
VA; Nashville, Cleveland, Cookeville, Johnson City, Morristown and
Knoxville in TN; Columbus and Albany in GA; Mobile, AL; Panama
City, FL; and Biloxi, MS.
Cautionary Information Regarding
Forward-Looking Statements
Included in this news release and other information that we make
publicly available from time to time are forward-looking management
comments and other statements that reflect management’s current
outlook for our performance in future periods and management’s
expectations for the proposed territory expansion described in the
Letter of Intent between the Company and The Coca-Cola Company
entered into in April 2013. These statements include, among others,
statements regarding the time frame for and sequencing of the
proposed territory expansion and other potential opportunities for
profitably growing our business as well as our plans for continuing
to innovate and evolve packaging and marketing strategies to
respond to ever-changing consumer tastes.
These statements and expectations are based on currently
available competitive, financial and economic data along with our
operating plans and are subject to future events and uncertainties
that could cause anticipated events not to occur or actual results
to differ materially from historical or anticipated results.
Implementation of the balance of the proposed territory expansion
described in the April 2013 Letter of Intent is subject to
negotiation and execution of definitive agreements with The
Coca-Cola Company and its affiliates for and consummation of
specific territory expansion transactions. Among the other events
or uncertainties which could adversely affect our performance in
future periods are: lower than expected selling pricing resulting
from increased marketplace competition; changes in how significant
customers market or promote our products; changes in our top
customer relationships; changes in public and consumer preferences
related to nonalcoholic beverages; unfavorable changes in the
general economy; miscalculation of our need for infrastructure
investment; our inability to meet requirements under beverage
agreements; material changes in the performance requirements for
marketing funding support or our inability to meet such
requirements; decreases from historic levels of marketing funding
support; changes in The Coca-Cola Company’s and other beverage
companies’ levels of advertising, marketing and spending on brand
innovation; the inability of our aluminum can or plastic bottle
suppliers to meet our purchase requirements; our inability to
offset higher raw material costs with higher selling prices,
increased bottle/can sales volume or reduced expenses;
consolidation of raw material suppliers could impact our
profitability; increased purchases of finished goods subject us to
incremental risks that could impact our profitability; sustained
increases in fuel costs or our inability to secure adequate
supplies of fuel; sustained increases in workers’ compensation,
employment practices and vehicle accident claims costs; sustained
increases in the cost of employee benefits; product liability
claims or product recalls; technology failures; changes in interest
rates; the impact of debt levels on operating flexibility and
access to capital and credit markets; adverse changes in our credit
rating (whether as a result of our operations or prospects or as a
result of those of The Coca-Cola Company or other bottlers in the
Coca-Cola system); changes in legal contingencies; legislative
changes affecting our distribution and packaging; adoption of
significant product labeling or warning requirements; additional
taxes resulting from tax audits; natural disasters and unfavorable
weather; global climate change or legal or regulatory responses to
such change; issues surrounding labor relations; bottler system
disputes; our use of estimates and assumptions; changes in
accounting standards; impact of obesity and health concerns on
product demand; public policy challenges regarding the sale of soft
drinks in schools; the impact of volatility in the financial
markets on access to the credit markets; the impact of acquisitions
or dispositions of bottlers by their franchisors; and the
concentration of our capital stock ownership. The forward-looking
statements in this news release should be read in conjunction with
the more detailed descriptions of the above factors located in our
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 29, 2013
under Part I, Item 1A “Risk Factors” as well as those additional
factors we may describe from time to time in other filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, the
Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements contained in this release as a result of
new information or future events or developments.
—Enjoy Coca-Cola—
Coca-Cola Bottling Co. ConsolidatedMedia Contact:Lauren C.
Steele, 704-557-4551Senior VP - Corporate AffairsorInvestor
Contact:James E. Harris, 704-557-4582Senior VP – Shared Services
& CFO
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