We had the opportunity to visit Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Kokomo and hear from Craig Severns, Brandon Bishop, and Abby Guge.

This independent, family-owned franchise dates back to 1907 in Logansport and expanded to Kokomo in 1916, with its first location on Jefferson Street. Coca-Cola began as a form of medicine, sold one bottle at a time, and has grown into a product enjoyed billions of times each day.

One of the most iconic parts of that growth is the bottle itself. As we heard, the goal was to “create a bottle so unique that you would recognize it by feel in the dark or lying broken on the ground”—a reminder of how powerful branding and product design can be.

There are only 68 Coca-Cola bottlers in the United States, each operating within a defined territory. Kokomo is considered a mid-sized franchise, distributing nearly 2 million cases per year across 15 counties, an impressive operation with deep local roots.