“It’s hard to see that type of thing coming.”
No it’s not. It’s an institution and had been for 90 years.
But that's ridiculous. Coke still existed, and people preferred the flavor of New Coke. As a company, I'm supposed to anticipate that people will revolt over a product that bears the same name and has a taste that more people prefer?
I get that people don't like change, but still. Here is essentially what people said: "I demand that you replace this better tasting product with one that tastes worse. Otherwise, I will stop buying your new, better tasting product."