Merchandise 7X is the formula name for the popular soft drink....Coca Cola. The exact ingredients for this top secret recipe is kept in an Atlanta, Georgia, bank vault. The formula was invented in 1886, by Atlanta, Georgia, pharmacist Dr. John Pemberton. The drink was originally sold as a tonic that eased headaches and soothed the nerves. When the prohibition law came into effect, Pemberton changed the name of his popular nerve tonic from "Pemberton's French Wine Coca" to Coca Cola. Sugar was substitued for the wine. Pemberton's accountant, Frank Robinson came up with the Coca Cola logo. After carbonation was added to the syrup, it was sold as a soft drink at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia. At only five cents a glass, that first year Pemberton sold only nine drinks a day for a year end total of $50.00. Pemberton's opinion that the drink was a failure is understandable since the Coca Cola venture had cost him $70.00.
Pemberton's conviction that the formula was a bust became evident when, one year later, in 1887, he sold the Merchandise 7X formula to another Atlanta pharmacist, Asa Chandler, for a mere $2300.00. While not much by today's standards, he did make more than $50.00 on the concoction that year!! Mr. Chandler is the person who first marketed Coca Cola making it into the successful business it is today.
