A couple weeks ago, the podcast team had an opportunity to sit down with Scott Uzzell, the president of the Coca-Cola Co.’s Venturing and Emerging Brands (VEB) unit. The overarching mission of VEB is to identify and nurture the next billion-dollar brands for Coke, and in this podcast, recorded at the NACS 2016 show, Uzzell shares details about the unit’s investment and incubation strategy. As part of a wide-ranging discussion, Uzzell, who has been with Coke for 16 years and was named president of VEB in February, 2014, discusses the three pillars of investment for VEB and why he views modern marketing and integrated technology as critical to the future of the beverage industry. He also shares his thoughts on Coke’s strategy for RTD coffee, particularly for VEB-managed illy and how the brand will be marketed and sold amid the company’s partnership with Dunkin’ Donuts to bottle and distribute a new line of bottled coffees as well as the upcoming launch of Gold Peak’s cold brew coffee. Uzzell also comments on the exceptional rise of Bai and his batting average for predictions on “the next big thing.”