Coke or Pepsi?
Coca-Cola lovers take note: the Subway on West Broad Street recently switched from Pepsi to Coca-Cola, making it the first place you might be able to call “on campus” (in the Ackell Residence Center building) where you can get a Coke instead of a Pepsi.
Why so much Pepsi? Thank VCU, which signed a projected $8.5 million, 10-year deal in 1994 to make Pepsi the exclusive soft drink provider on campus to help raise funds for the Alltel Pavilion at the Siegel Center, and to “support university recreational facilities and programs.”
A copy of VCU’s February 2002 monthly financial report obtained by The Commonwealth Times revealed that $805,000 was raised for VCU Athletics programs that month alone – and February’s the short month of the year.
VCU is certainly not alone among educational institutions in signing exclusive contracts with soft drink companies in return for financial gain, but other universities like U. Va. offer their students a choice of soft drinks while on campus. Coke or Pepsi? In most cases, the university’s choice is more valuable than your own.