“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 the North Koreans who created the greatest shock in World Cup history by beating the Italians. One of the players was the coach for the Ryongsong Cigarette factory - and we watched two of the factory teams play; delightfully their teams were the Paper Rollers vs. the Tobacconists.”
— Curated and contributed by Nick Bonner, Founder of Koryo Tours and author of ‘Made in North Korea: Graphics From Everyday Life in the DPRK’