Brand loyalty
is a moat. So I wouldn't say that Coca-Cola doesn't have a moat. In addition, economies of scale allow them to produce more cheaply + advertise more + distribute wider than competitors. Compare Coca-Cola to some beverage company I start tomorrow:
- Nobody's tasted my beverage, therefore nobody is craving its taste. Whereas billions of people are "addicted" to coke: they know what it tastes like and miss it when it's gone.
- Nobody's ever heard of my business. I have zero trust or loyalty. Whereas people have trusted code for a century, and actually consider themselves loyal to that company over others with similar goods.
- I have no money to buy ads with. Coke is running Super Bowl commercials.
- I have no distribution partnerships. Coke is in every vending machine and every restaurant. They've spread to almost every country, and even differentiated the taste to appeal to local taste buds.