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Current Affairs50 years of Kofola: a Czech retro soft-drink enjoys second wave of success
Originally a communist version of popular Western drinks like Coca-Cola and
Pepsi, the Czech product Kofola is celebrating 50 years of existence this
year. When the communist regime fell in 1989 and foreign brands entered the
market, there was less demand for this domestic soft drink. However, in
recent years Kofola has been enjoying renewed popularity. Sarah Borufka has
more.
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Business NewsBusiness News
In today's Business News: The Czech National Bank cut interest rates by
half a point to 2.25 percent this week; Prime Minister Mirek Topolánek has
warned against excessive regulation and government intervention during the
current global economic crisis; car maker Škoda Auto will halt car
production on Friday evening for three weeks; the Tatra company, famous for
building trucks and other large vehicles is to begin a series of phased
layoffs totalling 1,400 people by the end of next year; the soft-drink
company Kofola, maker of a cola drink of the same name, has received a 12
million crown fine from the country’s anti-monopoly commission and the
Czech government has approved a programme which binds it to replacing
government cars with more eco-friendly models.
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Business NewsBusiness News
In Business News this week: the Czech Republic has posted record trade
surplus in 2007; shopping space in the country is expected to expand by 50
percent; Czechs want to include Olomoucké tvarůžky on EU’s list of
protected foods; a pint of Pilsner Urquell beer is cheaper in Germany than
in the Czech Republic and Czech soft-drinks producer has launched a
sugar-free version of Kofola.
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Business NewsBusiness News
In Business News this week: the EC raps the Czech Republic on the knuckles
for breaking a promise to bring the public finance gap below 3.3 percent;
the Czech central bank increased interest rates by a quarter of a percent;
the number of ASDL internet connections doubles in one year; the Czech
government takes the first step towards privatising Budejovicky Budvar,
while European beer enthusiasts urge it not to; and Czech drinks maker
Kofola increases its sales by 20 percent in one year.
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Business NewsBusiness News
In Business News this week: the Czech Republic's leading retailers enjoy a
big increase in sales; government incentives attract a major increase in
inward investment, soft drinks manufacturer Kofola branches out into food
supplements, and the Czech government could face sanctions from the
European Commission for failing to impose a 48-hour working week.
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Current AffairsProducers capitalise on Czech "brand nostalgia"
The Czech Republic seems to have been hit by a wave of brand nostalgia. If
you owned a car before 1989, it was most probably a Skoda, you wore Botas
shoes, a Prim watch, cooked your dinner in a Remoska portable oven, chewed
on Pedro chewing gum and did your washing with the so-called Stag soap.
Skoda is one of only a few traditional trademarks that have successfully
survived the influx of western brands and products after the fall of
communism. Many other household names succumbed to the tough competition,
but in recent years old brands have been re-emerging as producers realise
they can capitalise on people's nostalgia after they have become saturated
with international brands.
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Business NewsKofola - how the communists' answer to Coca Cola was reinvented for the 21st century
It has been called the communist's answer to Coca Cola and Pepsi - a fizzy
cola with an unexpected twist - the Czech brand Kofola - actually invented
in the 1960s by the Communist Planning Committee as a means of using up
surplus caffeine extracted from coffee beans. In the 1970s and 80s the
brand enjoyed wide popularity in Czechoslovakia but found itself trouble
in 1990 when brand giants like Coca Cola and Pepsi fully entered the
Czechoslovak market.
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