COCA-COLA Simon malls enter into a sweet deal

The mall operator switched from Pepsi to Coke.
ATLANTA (AP) -- The battle between Coca-Cola and Pepsi is coming to a mall near you.
Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co. said last week it has entered into a marketing agreement with mall operator Simon Property Group, which had been doing business with PepsiCo Inc.'s Pepsi-Cola division for several years.
The alliance, which begins in January, covers vending, sponsorships, promotion and advertising across the vast Simon franchise.
Coca-Cola will have promotional and exclusive vending rights within the common areas of Simon properties in the United States. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Stewart Stockdale, Simon's chief marketing officer, declined to comment on the terms but said the deal was about more than money. He said it was about the Coke brand and its marketing ability.
Pepsi announced last week that it renewed its marketing agreement with Chicago-based mall operator General Growth Properties. It's a five-year deal, but financial terms were not disclosed.
General Growth is the second-largest mall operator in the country behind Simon.
Malls
Simon, based in Indianapolis, owns or has an interest in 249 properties totaling nearly 186 million square feet in 36 states, including the Southern Park Mall in Boardman. Major properties include The Fashion Center at Pentagon City in Washington; The Forum Shops at Caesars in Las Vegas; and Minnesota's tourist attraction, the Mall of America.
More than 100 million shoppers make approximately 2 billion visits to Simon malls each year. Coca-Cola is the world's largest beverage company.
The war between Coke and Purchase, N.Y.-based Pepsi has raged for years.
In March, United Airlines announced that Pepsi and Diet Pepsi would replace Coca-Cola and Diet Coke on board all its flights.
A month earlier, Blimpie International said it was dropping Coca-Cola from its 1,900 sandwich outlets in favor of Pepsi. Coca-Cola had supplied Blimpie since the chain opened in 1964.