Did he trade large amounts of pepsi for military vehicles with guns?
YES, this is pretty much the solution. However, anyone want to guess the details, like the with whom and so forth?
Was north korea involved?
No, the Soviet Union. I think we’ll just wrap it up. I tweaked things a bit to make it work, but the answer is:
Donald Kendall was a major executive for Pepsi in the mid-20th century. He got Pepsi introduced at a World’s Fair and got Khrushchev to try one. Eventually, Pepsi became desirable in the Soviet Union. This culminated in 1989 when the USSR wanted 3 billion USD of Pepsi, but Rubles were not a very valuable currency.
Instead, the USSR traded 3 billion USD and paid with 17 old submarines and three warships.
**Briefly, Pepsi(then I think run by Kendall) became the 6th largest military in the world. Very briefly and only jokingly. **They recycled/melted the military equipment down and took the money they got from that.
Kendall told a US official that Pepsi was disarming the USSR quicker than the US. It also got Pepsi a corner on the sugar-soda market in the USSR for quite awhile, making them money. Coke is now more popular, but Pepsi got there first.
That seems…quite bizarre. I guess there wasn’t a locally produced version of sugar-soda or if there was, no one wanted it.
The furniture Company IKEA once ran a full page ad in a popular fashion magazine asking readers to do something rather unusual with that ad in order to get a discount. Many customers did. I am pretty sure no business before or since has ever proposed its customers to do this with one of their ads. What was the request and the reasoning behind it?
Did this happen in Sweden?
Elsewhere in Europe?
In the USA?
Would it help to know what magazine?
Would it help to know the time period?
Is the fact that IKEA sells assemble-your-own furniture relevant?
Is some other aspect of IKEA’s corporate identity (e.g., restaurants and kids’ play areas in stores) relevant?
Did they burn the ad?
Did they use it as toilet paper?
Did they damage it in any way?
Did they have to eat the ad?
reply to Fretful Porpentine:
Did this happen in Sweden? Yes.
Elsewhere in Europe? Just in Sweden as far as I know, but maybe elsewhere.
In the USA? I don’t think so.
Would it help to know what magazine? Probably not.
Would it help to know the time period? **It was in the last few years. I don’t think time period is overly relevant. **
Is the fact that IKEA sells assemble-your-own furniture relevant? Tangently. It is an ad, after all, for IKEA.
Is some other aspect of IKEA’s corporate identity (e.g., restaurants and kids’ play areas in stores) relevant? No, their regular business.
reply to Mahaloth:
Did they burn the ad? No.
Did they use it as toilet paper? No.
Did they damage it in any way? Yes.
No. That would seem an iffy ad campaign healthwise!
Did they have to cut up the ad?
Reassemble it?
Something like a jigsaw puzzle? Or a tangram?
Did they have to physically interact with it in some way in the store, such as holding it up to their face or wearing it as an article of clothing?
Did they have to fold it?
If someone handed you the ad while you were in line in IKEA, would you have been able to do the thing by the time you reached checkout?
Did you have to do something embarrassing?
Was it an ad for a specific item or a general ad for IKEA?
Did they wear the ad as clothing?
No to all
reply to SurrenderDorothy:
Did they have to physically interact with it in some way in the store, such as holding it up to their face or wearing it as an article of clothing? No.
Did they have to fold it? No.
If someone handed you the ad while you were in line in IKEA, would you have been able to do the thing by the time you reached checkout? Yes.
Did you have to do something embarrassing? Yes. Or at least I think I would be embarrassed. YMMV.
Was it an ad for a specific item or a general ad for IKEA? Specific item.
No
addenda to a reply to SurrenderDorothy:
Did you have to do something embarrassing?
**
I originally read this question as a followup to the previous question. I don’t think it would be embarrassing at all to do what was requested, but I do think it would be kind of embarrassing to do it in line at IKEA. After all, the protocol for standing in line is to stand in line.**
So it is an interaction with the ad that would be embarrassing to do in line at IKEA.
Would the interaction be embarrassing in line because there are other people there?
Because you stand in line?
Would the interaction be less embarrassing in a seated or prone position?