“Wrapping paper from one of the department stores near the Koryo Hotel in the mid 1990’s. To keep the wrapping paper in one piece I had to buy something big so that they would not cut the paper in smaller bits, and then persuaded them that I would wrap it up when I got back […]
“Sugar packet circa 2025 – picked up on my recent flight for the Pyongyang International Marathon.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo Tours and author of ‘Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday Life in the DPRK’
“Ginseng sweets, certainly there was enough sugar content to leave a kid running around in circles for 20 minutes but there is also a strong taste of ginseng, so you can add another 20 minutes from the energy supplied by ginseng. The best ginseng is known to come from the Kaesong area but these sweets […]
“Since 1993, we have run a travel company taking in tourists to the DPRK (North Korea) and this was the best sweet to buy on long journeys from Pyongyang down to Kaesong. They are the type your granny gave you with that isoamyl acetate flavor that tastes like pear or apple drops.”— Curated and contributed by […]
“A tin of apricots dressed out in its Korean and Russian attire – just after the break up of the Soviet Union and this label design was made for both the local and the Soviet market. The label was more tasteful in design than its contents.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo […]
“Summer in Moranbong Park, Pyongyang, sold from one of the ladies who push around a trolly of ices around 2010 when designs started to get a bit more modern – nice tasting lolly.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo Tours and author of ‘Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday Life in […]
“Salt from Air Koryo circa 1990 – just loved the idea of design on something so basic. The salt is beautiful, never knew if the design was meant to represent crystals or just odd shapes.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo Tours and author of ‘Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday […]
“The Koryo Hotel is mainly for foreign visitors, local Koreans cannot visit unless high ranking or working with foreigners but it was one of the few places to buy imported goods as well as more upmarket local goods. This wrapping paper is from the mid 1990’s.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo […]
“Not sure where I picked up the matches somewhere early 1990’s – almost every man in North Korea smokes, so not difficult to find. Contains tiny match heads on very finely cut wood sticks – not sure about the safety of keeping them so they had to go.”— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder […]
“All are equal in North Korea but some more equal than others, and the Kangsol brand is a pretty basic cigarette. If you have the money, you would go for something more upmarket like the Paekdusan cigarette whose hard packaging looked more like a Western brand. We filmed the Game of Their Lives (2002) about […]
