Coca-Cola Great Britain launches ‘Project Open’ programme to help high street recovery
Coca-Cola Great Britain will help its small, independent customers find the secret to business success under a new ‘Project Open’ accelerator programme designed to help cafes, pubs and restaurants recover from the Covid-19 pandemic.
A handful of entrepreneurs from across the UK will get exclusive access to senior experts at Coca-Cola GB, Coca-Cola European Partners, Costa Coffee and innocent, to gain a rare look under the bonnet of these world-leading brands and discuss how their own business can respond to the challenge presented by three national lockdowns.
They will have dedicated 1-1 consultations with pioneering behavioural scientists Influence at Work – authors of the world’s bestselling suite of books on the psychology of ethical influence and how it can be applied to help businesses build stronger relationships and engagement with their customers.
Jon Woods, general manager, Coca-Cola Great Britain said: “The past year has been the toughest in memory for hospitality businesses and we know it’s our smallest customers who have the biggest challenge ahead. That’s why our senior leaders have committed their time and expertise to helping these businesses get back on their feet. Through this programme we will help some of our valued high street partners survive and thrive in the post-Covid era.”
With further businesses offered access to exclusive content, video tutorials and insights from the programme, the launch of the business accelerator is the latest in a series of initiatives launched by Coca-Cola to support its smaller customers in the hospitality sector over the past year.
As part of Coca-Cola’s ‘Open’ platform, last summer’s Open Like Never Before campaign donated media budget and advertising space to business owners, helping them create bespoke advertisements to communicate that they had reopened for business.
The campaign was part of a $100m global effort by Coca-Cola, its bottling partners and the Coca-Cola foundation to support local Covid-19 relief efforts around the world. In the UK, Coca-Cola provided 1.5m drinks to frontline workers and donated the equivalent of two million healthy meals and one million drinks for those in need through its charity partner Fareshare.
Small Business Minister Paul Scully said: “The government has backed small businesses with mentoring and advice as well as financial support to enable them to weather the pandemic and build back better, and it is great to see big brands like Coca-Cola doing their bit too.
“The expert support provided through this programme will help to drive innovation and creativity, and I look forward to seeing how these businesses apply what they’ve learned in the months to come.”
