Coca-Cola Bottle Art Tour opens it's door to the Philippines (story HERE) and we all saw the area in which, Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines made their debut and brought the new members together to come face to face with about half a century worth of Coca-Cola-inspired art from names like Andy Warhol, Clive Baker, Peter Blake, and Norman Rockwell. Recognized just last January as the local chapter of Coca-Cola Collectors International, the Club currently has about 800 members.
Coca-Cola Collectors Club was originally founded in 1974 as a non-profit organization in Atlanta, Georgia, is devoted to all things Coca-Cola—from its history to collecting memorabilia. To date, it has over 46 chapters across the world with the biggest one being in Atlanta. The Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines is one of the active members all over the world.
“Although The Coca-Cola Company does not sponsor the Club, we try to help with special projects and support their annual meeting. I am glad to meet the Philippine Club for the first time, see them enjoy the Bottle Art Tour, and share their plans to grow membership. The Club has become a great community of people with common interests, in as much as it has also been a regular venue to trade both items and stories,” says Ted Ryan, curator of the Bottle Art Tour and Director for Heritage Communications of The Coca-Cola Company.
Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines President Jay-Ar Mendoza said the Club began with just him and three other friends, who are avid fans of the brand. In 2014, they set-up a Facebook Group and started accepting people in until it became a very active community of individuals who love Coke history.
“Not all of them are collectors,” says Jay-Ar, “but we constantly encourage them to start their own pool of tokens or souvenirs. In other countries, the collectors would really allot money for expensive items and participate in auctions--here it is not the case because of certain financial limits. Nonetheless the love for brand stands and we are just as passionate as the other collectors around the world,” says Mendoza.
Like any other organized club, last January 2015, they has meet-ups, formalize the organization, and be recognized by Coca-Cola Collectors Club International. But to start, Jay-Ar’s story with Coca-Cola began as far back as the early 90s, when the Always Coca-Cola Classic Commercial was still airing and neighborhood sari-sari stores served as very important trading points of two commodities: pogs and slammers.
Moreover, the four-piece Coca-Cola Truck Attack collectibles were also being traded and kids were clamoring for mini Coca-Cola bottles and their mini crates. From a small holding area, Jay-Ar slowly and methodically decked three walls with items, gathering trinkets from the countries he visited and occasionally getting some packages from his Atlanta-based parents.
His most-prized item in the collection was the Cebu bottling plant inauguration bottle that was produced in the 70s.
The future for Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines, as Jay-Ay says, is to be able to mount a local Coca-Cola Convention, complete with auctions, seminars, and swap meets.
For more information, checkout Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines on Facebook.
“Not all of them are collectors,” says Jay-Ar, “but we constantly encourage them to start their own pool of tokens or souvenirs. In other countries, the collectors would really allot money for expensive items and participate in auctions--here it is not the case because of certain financial limits. Nonetheless the love for brand stands and we are just as passionate as the other collectors around the world,” says Mendoza.
Like any other organized club, last January 2015, they has meet-ups, formalize the organization, and be recognized by Coca-Cola Collectors Club International. But to start, Jay-Ar’s story with Coca-Cola began as far back as the early 90s, when the Always Coca-Cola Classic Commercial was still airing and neighborhood sari-sari stores served as very important trading points of two commodities: pogs and slammers.
Moreover, the four-piece Coca-Cola Truck Attack collectibles were also being traded and kids were clamoring for mini Coca-Cola bottles and their mini crates. From a small holding area, Jay-Ar slowly and methodically decked three walls with items, gathering trinkets from the countries he visited and occasionally getting some packages from his Atlanta-based parents.
His most-prized item in the collection was the Cebu bottling plant inauguration bottle that was produced in the 70s.
The future for Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines, as Jay-Ay says, is to be able to mount a local Coca-Cola Convention, complete with auctions, seminars, and swap meets.
For more information, checkout Coca-Cola Collectors Club Philippines on Facebook.
