I have a plan to bring back Pepsi Blue

Remember 2002?

Prince Michael II, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Kmart, Justin and Britney, No Child Left Behind. In some ways, the world has changed a great deal (i.e. Kelly Clarkson). In other ways, it hasn’t (R.Kelly). Some things that got their start that year – like the New England Patriots’ dynasty – are still going strong. Others – like Pepsi Blue – are but distant memories.

Although I would have preferred the Patriots’ Super Bowl win to be the blip in history, unfortunately it was Pepsi Blue that got the hook after just two years. But I have an idea, a grand vision to revive it just in time for the holiday season.


Coca-Cola controls the soft drink market during Christmas. Historians even argue that their advertisements in the 1920s and 1930s helped shape Santa Claus into the chunky, red, jiggly jingler we know today. Their red cans and polar bears have further entrenched them as the unofficial pop of Christmas.

You may be skeptical as to why a berry-flavored cola would be brought out during Christmastime when it has to compete with a holiday mainstay and its ideal marketability would probably come in the summer anyway. It’s a fair point, but I can explain my reasoning in two words:

Elvis Presley.

The King added blue to the Christmas color wheel when his rendition of Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson’s “Blue Christmas” became a commercial smash in 1957.  So imagine what kind of marketing campaign Pepsi could whip up if they used Elvis’ voice.


Picture this:

It’s December 24, 2003. A nine year old boy is desperately trying to stay awake all night to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus. He goes downstairs in his pajamas in the middle of the night for a drink and finds Pepsi Blue in the fridge. He opens a bottle, and while he’s sipping it, in comes Santa. The kid is floored, and Santa asks the kid for a sip of his Pepsi Blue so he too can stay awake for the rest of the night. The kid obliges, and then Santa leaves.

The next year, the kid tries to stay up all night to see Santa again. He goes downstairs to get a drink, but there’s no Pepsi Blue. No pop at all. [cue “Blue Christmas”] He plops down on the couch and eventually falls asleep waiting for Santa.

A montage of the next several Christmases all go similarly, as year after year the boy tries unsuccessfully to stay up to see Santa. Eventually he gets older and stops believing that Santa still exists. So on December 24, 2017, the 23 year old wakes up in the middle of the night and goes to the kitchen for a drink. He opens the fridge to find a small package wrapped in shiny blue and silver paper. Curious, he opens it to find a six-pack of Pepsi Blue bottles. His eyes light up immediately. He tears open the box, pops the cap off, and takes a swig. As he pulls the bottle away from his lips, he smiles and the camera pans out as Elvis croons “I'll have a blue, blue, blue, blue Christmas.”

So that’s my idea.

Pepsi should set the return of Pepsi Blue for December 25 with a little inspiration from Elvis. I would also be willing to bet that the buzz surrounding the new campaign would definitely eat into Coke’s share of Christmas revenue.

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