Juno (brand of cigarettes)

Enamel plaque from the Josetti cigarette factory, ca.1900

The Juno cigarette brand, always written as JUNO , was created in 1896 by the Berlin cigarette factory "JOSETTI" on the basis of new Virginia tobacco.

The introduction of the brand

A thick and round shape was chosen to distinguish it from the flat oriental cigarettes with an oval cigarette cross-section that were customary at the time. The slogan of the introductory phase was "thick and round", also to be found on the cigarette packets of the early days. The word / figurative mark "Josetti-Juno" was registered with the DPMA on February 9, 1898 under no. 34169. and is still maintained today by Reemtsma Cigarettenfabriken GmbH, 22761 Hamburg.

The Josetti cigarette factory

Former Josetti cigarette factory, from 1924 in the Manoli AG building, Berlin, Rungestrasse 22–24

The Berlin manufacturing company was founded in 1888 by Oskar Josetti at Hamburger Straße 8. In 1892 the founder emigrated to the USA and sold the company for 500 marks to Ferdinand Meier, who continued the company with partner Leopold Peters in 1895 as "Cigarettenfabrik Josetti, Inh. Meier & Peters oHG". In order to produce the new “JUNO” cigarette, new premises had to be rented at Rosenthaler Strasse 40, Neue Friedrichstrasse 9-10 and in Hamburg at Zeughausmarkt 35–37 (1896–1902). During this time, the Berlin cigarette factory Manoli, with 200 workers, was one of the largest in the branch in the German Reich.

In 1905 Jasmatzi AG from Dresden (since 1902 under the management of American Tobacco Comp. ) Took over Josetti GmbH. In addition to the main brand JUNO as a round cigarette with and without filter, the brands VERA and ELJEN were produced.
In 1908, the competitor Manoli expanded by moving to its new building complex at Rungestrasse 22-24 in Berlin-Mitte 52 ° 30 ′ 45 ″ N , 13 ° 25 ′ 7 ″ E , and in 1921 it was converted into an AG.52.512377777778 13.418675
In 1910, for the Josetti GmbH in close proximity to a small plant in the Wusterhauser 15-16 (Berlin Confederation SO 16) 52 ° 30 '39 " N , 13 ° 25' 13" O set.52.510919444444 13.420286111111

During the First World War , the state ran an anti-trust campaign against foreign investments, financed by Deutsche Bank. In 1915, Deutsche Bank was able to buy back foreign shares in Jasmatzi AG.

Takeover by Reemtsma

After the inflation of 1923/24, a community of interests (IG ) dominated by Reemtsma (Hamburg) formed from various cigarette manufacturers such as Jasmatzi AG (Berlin), Yenidze GmbH (Dresden) and Constantin KG (Hanover, Dresden). In 1928 Reemtsma AG began its process of concentration, in the course of which it merged all competitors into a single group with 14,000 employees by 1935.

In 1924 Reemtsma took over the majority of the shares in Manoli AG (1000 employees) and relocated the production of Josetti GmbH to the Manoli building at Rungestraße 22-24, Berlin-Mitte .
On February 18, 1928, Reemtsma registered its own trademark rights to the successful Josetti cigarette JUNO. At that time, Reemtsma was only involved in Jasmatzi AG and its JUNO production via shares.
In 1930, the production of Manoli AG was discontinued, whose trademark rights were only maintained pro forma. In 1935 Reemtsma liquidated Manoli AG.
On April 26, 1934, the well-known saying “For a good reason Juno is round” was published by a “Berliner Zigarettenfabrik GmbH Hadlichstr. 44 “registered as a word mark. The resident cigarette factory Garbáty GmbH had previously been transferred for political reasons 50% of the Reemtsma Group.
In 1935 Reemtsma AG acquired all of the shares in its competitor Jasmatzi AG, which was then converted into a KG. Until then, Jasmatzi had fulfilled the function of taking over smaller competitors. Garbáty GmbH was also converted into a limited liability company and was forcibly sold in 1938.

During the Second World War, the JUNO cigarette was abruptly withdrawn from the market at the end of 1943, apparently the Berlin production plants had been destroyed by air raids.

post war period

Through the division of Berlin , the GDR came into possession of the former Josetti company documents (VEB Josetti) and incorporated the "East JUNO" production (flat and oval) into VEB Tabak Nordhausen . Reemtsma Hamburg produced a “West-JUNO” (thick and round) again from March 5, 1951 in Berlin. The "Format 100 Juno Filter" followed later in the GDR; its excess length was intended to illustrate the superiority of the socialist system in everyday life.

In the 1970s, the West-Juno was first limited to the filter version and then taken off the market due to poor sales. It was not placed again in the (West) German market until 1983. Since then Reemtsma has sold the JUNO 100 (“Traditional Blend Tobacco”) and a JUNO (“German Blend Tobacco”, “long and round”).

In May 2016, the Reemtsma Group announced that it had discontinued production of the Juno brand.

advertising

In the period up to the First World War 1914–1918, small adhesive stamps were common as advertising for everyday products, which also reveal the price of two pfennigs for a JUNO. The slogan at that time was “thick and round”. After the takeover by Reemtsma, JUNO cigarette advertising was no longer focused solely on Berlin, but also on the German Reich and primarily on Hamburg. The advertising slogan has been changed to “Juno is round for a reason”. During this time, the JUNO cigarette cost four Reichspfennig (or two groschen in a pack of six).

In the post-war period, the corresponding advertising hit was texted and composed by Just Scheu ; Bully Buhlan recorded it in 1951 with the Erich Börschel Orchestra for a shellac advertising record.

Advertising stamps for JUNO, ca.1910
Historic JUNO advertising in Wittenbergplatz underground station , Berlin
JUNO advertisement on a bus operated by the Berlin transport company during the BVG strike in 1932