Prima (cigarette)

Prima is a Russian brand of cigarettes that was manufactured at the Kiev Tobacco Factory in the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic since 1970. Today, it is owned and manufactured in Russia by various tobacco manufacturers.

History

Prima cigarettes were created by the leadership of the German Labor Front during the occupation of Ukraine by Germany in the Second World War; the target market was guest workers. The package was painted with colors of Nazi symbols and the name was written in the German Blackletter font. In 1970, these cigarettes were produced again in the Soviet Union, becoming popular because of their low price and the quality of their tobacco compared to another popular Russian brand, Belomorkanal. Prima cigarettes are now produced by a number of tobacco factories throughout Russia.

Markets

Prima cigarettes were sold in the following countries: Moldova, Transnistria, the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, the Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Belarus, Ukraine, the Soviet Union, Russia, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Israel and Indonesia.