11 famous products that were originally intended for a completely different purpose by Will Heilpern on Apr 1, 2016, 10:50 AM Advertisement
 Some of the best discoveries happen by accident. As a result, many of the world's most famous brands and products started out doing something completely different to that what they are known for today. They range from soft drinks that were originally laced with powerful mind-altering drugs to, medicines with unexpected, but profitable, side-effects. We collected 11 examples of products that have been remarkably successful, despite being intended for a completely different purpose. SEE ALSO: 16 famous brands that started off as products for the military Coca-Cola started out as a cure for morphine addiction.  Dr. John Pemberton, who invented the original formulation of the black syrupy soft drink in 1886, had been badly injured in the battle of Columbus. After this, he became hopelessly addicted to prescription morphine, according to Jeremy Agnew in his book Alcohol and Opium in the Old West. Being a trained pharmacist, Pemberton decided to come up with his own addiction cure. This resulted in "Pemberton’s French Wine Coca" — a dink that contained alcohol and cocoa leaf extract — the same ingredient that makes cocaine. When Coca-Cola was first launched, it was marketed as a nerve tonic that "relieves exhaustion." Cocaine was removed from the product in 1903.
Listerine started out as an anti-septic.  You might be alarmed, but maybe not that surprised to hear that the blue, stinging liquid you have been gargling every morning was originally marketed as as a floor cleaner and a cure for gonorrhea, according to Freakonomics. Also used as a surgical antiseptic, the product did not become commercially successful until it re-branded as a cure for bad breath. Again according to Freakonomics, the company's revenues rose from $115,000 to more than $8 million in the seven years after the change of strategy.
Bubble Wrap was originally marketed as wallpaper.  Marc Chavannes and Alfred Fielding had been attempting to devise a new style of textured wallpaper,when they came up with bubble wrap in 1957, according to Forbes. They created it through sealing together two shower curtains, which made the first layer of the bubbles. Unsuccessfully, the pair tried selling the product first as wallpaper and later as greenhouse insulation. According to Sealed Air company legend, it was not until IBM launched the 1401 computer in 1959 that bubble wrap was first used for the purpose of keeping products safe in transit.
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