Est Cola

Soft drink from Thailand

Est

Type	Cola
Manufacturer	Sermsuk Public Company Limited
Country of origin	Thailand
Introduced	2012; 12 years ago (2012)
Website	www.estthai.com

Est (stylized as est; Thai: เอส) Cola is a cola soft drink from Thailand, manufactured by Sermsuk Public Company Limited. It was launched on 2 November 2012.^[1]

History

Est Cola was created following the termination of the company's contract with PepsiCo, for whom it had bottled and distributed Pepsi in Thailand since 1952.^[2] The Pepsi-Sermsuk split created an opportunity for Coca-Cola to become the leading soda brand in the country.^[3] PepsiCo had 48% market shares in Thailand before the split (and Coca-Cola 42%), but its shares dropped to 15% after the split. The split happened after PepsiCo tried and failed to take over Sermsuk.^[4]

In 2013, Est signed a 2-year partnership with Manchester City F.C. to use the club's image for advertising purposes in Thailand.^[5]

In 2014, ThaiBev acquired Est Cola from Sermsuk for THB1.56 billion. Sermsuk remained the manufacturer of the cola.^[6]

Variants

est Cola
est Sugar Free Cola
est Play: Fruit-flavored soft drink. Available in orange, cream soda, strawberry, grape berry, lychee-pear and lemon-lime (also known as est Clear) varieties.

References

^ Kwanchai Rungfapaisarn, "Serm Suk seeks No 1 spot for est cola in 3 years" Archived 2016-04-21 at the Wayback Machine, The Nation, 3 November 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
^ "est cola" Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine, Appon's Thai Food, 17 November 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
- Shane Danaher and Praj Kiatpongsan, "Thailand’s Cola Conflict: Est vs. Pepsi", Coconuts Bangkok, 26 December 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
- Amy Sawitta Lefevre, "Pepsi suddenly scarce in Thailand after bottler breakup", Reuters, 22 February 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
^ "Swap Coca Cola For Est In Thailand". Culture Trip. 2018-03-06. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
^ Edwards, Jim. "Pepsi, The No.1 Soda In Thailand, Just Had Its Market Share Wiped Out By A Lookalike Brand". Business Insider. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
^ "Maker of est cola, Man City ink marketing agreement". nationthailand. 2013-07-30. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
^ "ThaiBev acquires 'Est' cola for 1.56B". Coconuts. 28 October 2014. Retrieved 2024-04-08.