http://www.jewishworldreview.com | (KRT) ISTANBUL The Cold War may be over in this strategically placed country, but the Cola War has just begun.
A large Turkish cookie company, Ulker, has claimed a hefty chunk of the cola market from the industry giants, Coca-Cola and Pepsi, almost overnight. The U.S. companies have responded by lowering prices in a battle that, like many things in Turkey these days, has political overtones that outweigh the bottom line.
Ulker's opening salvo was a snappy television ad campaign featuring American actor Chevy Chase that began airing last month. The ads for the new drink, called Cola Turka, exploit a growing feeling of nationalism among Turks and mounting anti-American sentiments stemming from the unpopular war in neighboring Iraq.
In a bit of serendipity, the advertising campaign started July 4, the day 11 Turkish soldiers were taken into custody by U.S. troops in northern Iraq.
The incident, the first time one NATO country has taken another NATO member's soldiers into custody, got enormous attention in the Turkish media and fanned anti-American feelings.
Whether or not its timing was accidental, Ulker is not the first company to tap into nationalistic feelings in an attempt to persuade locals to abandon companies closely associated with American culture.
Drinks with an anti-American message, like Mecca Cola and Zam Zam Cola, have popped up in the Mideast and Europe.
But unlike those local soft drinks, which are aimed at a small niche, Ulker wants to dominate the national market in this youthful country of nearly 70 million, where Coke has 57 percent of sales and Pepsi 27 percent.
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Ulker says it wants a 25 percent share of the growing soft-drink market in Turkey by the end of the year. The company has not released sales figures, but Cola Turka has clearly caught on.
"Cola Turka has grabbed 40 percent of my sales," said Muharrem Temel, who runs a refreshment stand in a posh, western neighborhood of Istanbul. "If that can happen here in Bebek, where so many foreigners live, imagine the company's success in the rural areas, where people are more conservative and nationalistic."
Although ad agency executives have described their strategy as "positive nationalism," Ulker spokesman, Umit Gorker, expressed surprise at the patriotic response.
"When the ad agency came up with the idea, it just seemed funny," Gorker said. "We hadn't decided to promote our drink as a counter-American product, but the ads seem to have taken on more meaning than we anticipated."
Reactions among Turkish consumers have been strong.
Ahmet Tarik Kulege banned the sale of American soft drinks in his cafe in Manisa to demonstrate his aversion to U.S. policies.
But two police officers cycling through one of Istanbul's neighborhoods, both fans of Turka Cola and its commercials, said they harbored no ill feelings toward the United States.
"The commercial is just about the solidarity of Turkish people," said Officer Serkan Gunduz. "It is not anti-American, just pro-Turkish."
Leaving a small grocery store, a woman who asked that her name not be used said she would not buy any Ulker product because of what she considers the company's politically conservative agenda.
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Coca-Cola executives in Turkey and in Europe declined to talk on the record about the new competitor. However, one Coke executive said any competitor is taken seriously.
Taking exception to the portrayal of Coca-Cola as a foreign company, he noted that the corporation is one of the largest investors in the Turkish economy and that majority ownership is in Turkish hands.
Cola Turka ads that have aired so far on Turkish television have a comic amalgamation of Turkish and American culture. In each, Chase appears as a perplexed average American, who watches people around him turn into Turks when they drink Cola Turka.
Success has not come without a backlash. There have been allegations that Ulker is a "green" company. The term refers to the color associated with Islam and implies that the company supports an Islamic agenda in this predominantly Muslim but staunchly secular country.
The company, which is regarded as one of the country's most efficient and well-run businesses, has been a major contributor to Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party, created from the ashes of a party banned several years ago for Islamic leanings.
"You must not blemish the image of a company that may be conservative but does not have some hidden agenda," said Cem Duna, a prominent business consultant and retired ambassador.
Whether Cola Turka has any staying power will depend not on nationalism but on taste.
"It doesn't matter to me if it's American or Turkish. If the consumer wants it, I'll sell it," said Bayram Kaplankaya, owner of a small grocery store. "At first, people bought it because they were curious. We will have to wait to see if they keep buying it because they like it."
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