The product that has given the world its best-known taste was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 8, 1886. Dr. John Stith Pemberton, a local pharmacist, produced the syrup for Coca-Cola®, and carried a jug of the new product down the street to Jacobs’ Pharmacy, where it was sampled, pronounced “excellent” and placed on sale for five cents a glass as a soda fountain drink. Dr. Pemberton never realised the potential of the beverage he created. He gradually sold portions of his business to various partners and, just prior to his death in 1888, sold his remaining interest in Coca-Cola to Asa G. Candler. An Atlantan with great business acumen, Mr. Candler roceeded to buy additional business rights and acquire complete control. On May 1, 1889, Asa Candler published a full-page advertisement in The Atlanta Journal, proclaiming his wholesale and retail drug business as “sole proprietors of Coca-Cola ... Delicious. Refreshing. Exhilarating. Invigorating.” Sole ownership, which Mr. Candler did not actually achieve until 1891, needed an investment of $ 2,300.
It was only in 1892 that Mr. Candler formed a company called The Coca-Cola Corporation.
Source: Website of Coca Cola company