Since 1920, Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper Bottling Company has been proud to provide refreshment to the communities of the Ozarks. From our humble beginnings with the Rice family’s purchase of Electric Bottling Company/Farmer’s Beverages in Springfield, we now operate five additional facilities throughout the Midwest. We produce and distribute over 650 products, including Coca-Cola and Dr Pepper brand products, BODYARMOR, and Monster Energy. Throughout our history, we have been a family-owned business committed to embodying the spirit of customer service and to strengthening the community around us that has propelled us to such success.
Our operation began on West Phelps in downtown Springfield, within the Producers Creamery & Produce building. Led by company president Edwin Rice, we set the by-laws of Springfield Coca-Cola at our inaugural stockholder meeting. We changed locations twice in the next twenty years, first to West Commercial Street, then to the corner of Clay and Central. In 1945, Ed Heer, husband of Virginia Rice, was elected to the Board of Directors. Five years later, Heer became Secretary of the company, and Ed “Cookie” Rice was elected to the Board. Rice was appointed President of the company in 1970, and currently serves as CEO. In 1977, we moved our Springfield operation into our then-newly-built headquarters on North Packer Road. We purchased a new facility in Rolla from the Massey family in 1979, further expanding our operation. Our Bolivar facility was purchased in 1983, and four years later we celebrated the purchase of the Dr Pepper franchise. It wasn’t until 2015 that we resumed expansion with growth into the Joplin and West Plains territories. We acquired our newest service area, Northwest Arkansas, in 2017.
Our most recent expansion came with the completion of a new warehouse and production line at our Packer Road headquarters. Complete with a plastic bottle blow mold allowing us to produce our own bottles, these new assets have greatly increased our production and storage capacity, while also reducing manufacturing costs. To learn more about our history, check out our company timeline here.
The first century of our history has been filled with achievement and growth. In addition to our wonderful staff and the men and women who have led us to such success, we owe a great deal to the Ozarks and surrounding communities. The Ozarks Coca-Cola/Dr Pepper Bottling Company thanks you all for your continued support, and we look forward to serving you in the second century of our history.