the major problem for coke

The main problem for coke in Australia is the duopoly of the two major retail food chains: Coles and Safeway. They control 80% of the market between them.

There strong arm tactics has prevented coke from significantly increasing its prices through the supermarkets over many many many years.

One of my businesses was a café.
I bought coke in the supermarkets because it was always much cheaper than buying directly through a coke distributor.
Yes the retail customer can get it cheaper at coles/safeway than I can as a wholesaler.

My café was set up in 1997.
Back then a box of coke cost around $12-$15 box depending on specials.
Today it costs around $14-$17 depending on specials.
And those specials come along every 2nd week.

So in 16odd years of operation the purchase price has increased by around 10%!!!!!!!!

Since the duopoly is stable in Australia, there is no way this problem is going away.

The more they try to increase prices through their own coke distributors, the more the individual shops just buy at the supermarket.

I am not touching this stock until price levels drop much further.

It might bounce from the low $9.00 level, but it will prove to be a dead-cat bounce. Sucking all the 'value' investors who don't understand the strategic risk, or who think that just because a share price has dropped it becomes 'value'.

For those that are about to argue that coke has managed to increases prices as per their statements in previous years.
Yes they have been increases prices to the wholesale level.
To the shops they sell directly to.
But its become increasingly price uncompetitive. The price differential is becoming greater and greater.
So slowly they are constantly loosing sales units in this segment.