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Tuzex was a series of state-run shops in
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...
from 1957 to 1992 which did not accept normal
Czechoslovak koruna The Czechoslovak koruna (in Czech and Slovak: ''koruna československá'', at times ''koruna česko-slovenská''; ''koruna'' means ''crown'') was the currency of Czechoslovakia from 10 April 1919 to 14 March 1939, and from 1 November 1945 to 7 ...
currency A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a ''system of money'' in common use within a specific envi ...
but only
voucher A voucher is a bond of the redeemable transaction type which is worth a certain money, monetary value and which may be spent only for specific reasons or on specific goods. Examples include house, housing, travel, and food vouchers. The term vou ...
s (bony) which could be purchased from banks using foreign currency. They supplied luxury items: local goods in short supply and in particular foreign goods. The Tuzex vouchers were effectively an unofficial parallel currency.


History

The
Czechoslovak koruna The Czechoslovak koruna (in Czech and Slovak: ''koruna československá'', at times ''koruna česko-slovenská''; ''koruna'' means ''crown'') was the currency of Czechoslovakia from 10 April 1919 to 14 March 1939, and from 1 November 1945 to 7 ...
(crown) was a soft currency, that is, not exchangeable for other currencies outside the country. In 1948, shops were established under the name Darex to sell goods to foreigners for foreign (hard) currency only (based on the earlier
Torgsin Torgsin (Russian: ) were state-run hard-currency shops that operated in the USSR between 1931 and 1936. Their name was an acronym of the phrase ''torgovlia s inostrantsami'' (Russian: ), "trade with foreigners." Unlike the later Beryozka stores, ...
shops in the
Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
). Later, these became open to ordinary citizens, but not for crowns. In 1950, to speed up transactions and limit fraud, foreign currency was first converted into Darex vouchers in values of crowns. In 1957, the PZO (Foreign Trade Enterprise) Tuzex (a contraction of ''tuzemský export'' omestic export was founded in order to get convertible foreign currency into the country. This currency came directly from foreigners visiting the country, but also from relatives or citizens working abroad, who could send currency to friends and family to buy items in Tuzex, with Tuzex vouchers instead of Darex ones. The vouchers could not be re-exchanged for foreign currency and were valid for a limited time. (The state would convert unused vouchers back to normal currency at a rate of 2 crowns per Tuzex crown, a fraction of their effective purchasing power.) The first shop was established in
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
on Rytířská street, and the next in
Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...
. In 1961 there were 14 shops, rising to 170 in 1988. However, the fact that otherwise unavailable luxuries could be purchased led to an unofficial or
grey market A grey market or dark market (sometimes confused with the similar term "parallel import, parallel market") is the trade of a commodity through distribution channels that are not authorised by the original manufacturer or trademark proprietor. ...
(technically illegal but tolerated) buying Tuzex vouchers with Czechoslovak currency at a high premium, typically 5 to 1. The Darex and Tuzex vouchers were colloquially known as ''bony''. The hustlers or
spiv A spiv is a petty criminal in the United Kingdom who deals in illicit, typically black market, goods. Spivs were particularly active during the Second World War and in the post-war period when many goods were rationed due to shortages. According ...
s who would offer sell them on the street (close to a Tuzex shop) were known as ''veksláci'' (from German ''Wechsel'' - exchange) A 1987 film with title: ''
Bony a klid ''Bony a klid'' is a Czech drama film directed by . It was released in 1988. A sequel, was released in 2014. Plot The film is set in Prague. Martin, a young man from Mladá Boleslav, becomes a victim of a fraud committed by Richard, a currency d ...
'' (''vouchers and tranquility'' as a (phonetical) reference to
Bonnie and Clyde Bonnie Elizabeth Parker (October 1, 1910May 23, 1934) and Clyde Chestnut "Champion" Barrow (March 24, 1909May 23, 1934) were American outlaws who traveled the Central United States with their gang during the Great Depression, committing a ser ...
) reflects the daily lives of petty criminals dealing with the vouchers. Following the
Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution () or Gentle Revolution () was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations against the one-party government of the Communist Pa ...
in 1989 and the reformation of the country, citizens were able to travel abroad more freely and to legally deal with other currencies. In addition, improved domestic economy and more imports meant that Tuzex sales declined. The sale of Tuzex vouchers ceased on 30 June 1992. As well as running the shops, the Tuzex corporation had activities in various countries in order to trade Czechoslovak goods and obtain supplies for the shops. This continued for a while after the closure of the shops in 1992 to complete contracts and for liquidation of the assets.


Tuzex vouchers

Tuzex vouchers were originally issued in values of 0.50, 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100 crowns and later 500 crowns. However, from 1958 there was a voucher of 71.50 crowns, being issued in exchange for US$10. Tuzex also issued vouchers to foreigners to buy motor fuel. In 1988 the first payment card in Czechoslovakia was introduced to allow cashless purchases at Tuzex stores.


Goods

Initially, Tuzex stocked export-quality Czechoslovak products (e.g. fine chocolate, alcohol) at what would be a good price for foreigners, and Western products such as cigarettes. Better quality/style clothing became important, with Tuzex clothes becoming an indicator of success for some people. The clothes selection eventually included jeans (the first being the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
brand
Rifle A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...
in 1968) as the epitome of western or "Texas" clothing,
white goods A major appliance is a non-portable or semi-portable machine used for routine housekeeping tasks such as cooking, washing laundry, or food preservation. Such appliances are sometimes collectively known as white goods, as the products were tradi ...
, and motor cars. The advantage in many cases was that such goods were available immediately instead of a long wait of possibly years. In 1988, Tuzex had 170 shops which sold $250 million worth of goods, two-thirds western imports, and one-third export-quality items from Czechoslovakia.


See also

*
Eastern Bloc economies Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...
*
Foreign exchange certificate A foreign exchange certificate (FEC) is a tool for foreign exchange control in countries where the national currency is subject to exchange controls or is not convertible. The arrangements vary significantly case by case. Common types Some of ...
*
Torgsin Torgsin (Russian: ) were state-run hard-currency shops that operated in the USSR between 1931 and 1936. Their name was an acronym of the phrase ''torgovlia s inostrantsami'' (Russian: ), "trade with foreigners." Unlike the later Beryozka stores, ...
, the precursor from 1931-1936 USSR *
Beryozka (Russian retail store) Beryozka or Beriozka ( Russian: , lit. ''"little birch"'') was the common name of two chains of state-run retail stores in the Soviet Union that sold goods in exchange for foreign currency. Beriozkas sold luxury goods such as chocolate and ca ...
, a Soviet Union counterpart *
Intershop Intershop was a chain of government-owned and operated retail stores in the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) in which only hard currencies (and later Forum checks) could be used to purchase high-quality goods, usually from or as ...
, an East German counterpart *
Pewex Pewex () (short for ''Przedsiębiorstwo Eksportu Wewnętrznego'' – Internal Export Company) was a chain of hard-currency shops founded in 1972, during the Communist era in Poland that accepted payment only in United States dollars and other h ...
, a Polish counterpart *
Corecom Corecom () was a chain of hard-currency stores during the communist rule in Bulgaria. Goods were often priced cheaper than in the West; however, they were still inaccessible for most Bulgarians because the national currency, the lev, was not ...
, a Bulgarian counterpart


References

{{Authority control 1992 disestablishments in Czechoslovakia Hard currency shops in socialist countries Czechoslovak Socialist Republic Czechoslovak companies established in 1957 Retail companies established in 1957 Retail companies disestablished in 1992