About that 'Soomskaya'

Na zdorovia!

To your health!

JERSEY CITY, N.J. - The distributor of Soomskaya Riabinovaya, a flavored vodka produced in the Sumy region of Ukraine, ran paid advertisements for the product in several pre-holiday issues of The Ukrainian Weekly. Subsequently, The Weekly received several reactions to the Russian-language transliteration for the name of a product imported from Ukraine. The printed ad also provoked an exchange of letters via e-mail between R.L. Chomiak, of McLean, Va., an exacting reader and an occasional contributor to this paper, and Andrei Hartt, a vice-president at United Spirits Import Co., the vodka's distributor. Below are excerpts from their electronic exchange.

* * *

To: United Spirits
From: R.L. Chomiak
Subject: vodka

Just saw your ad for Soomskaya Riabinovaya in The Ukrainian Weekly, and definitely will be on the lookout for it.

The only thing that bothers me is that someone gave you bad advice on the label design: why transliterate into English from Russian when the vodka is from Ukraine, whose official language is Ukrainian? "Soomska Riabynova" would have been much better than "Soomskaya Riabinovaya." I know that in Sumy most of the population - but not all - prefers to speak Russian, and "Soomskaya" is what the people at the distillery call it, but this is an export item, for Pete's sake.

Philip Morris, for example, makes chocolates near Sumy, in Trostianets, and the wrappers are prominently labeled in Ukrainian.

And your advertising slogan, "Bood'mo!" [Budmo!] is definitely Ukrainian, not Russian. Good. Now here's hoping your sales in America take off - you'll soon run out of the current labels, and you'll redesign them - with the transliteration from Ukrainian.

Bood'mo!
R.L. Chomiak
McLean, Va.

* * *

Dear Mr. Chomiak:

Thank your for your considered and supportive e-mail. The spelling and pronunciation of the name of our vodka has become a recurring theme in the day-to-day activities of our business.

United Spirits Import Co. is a small family business with participating family members in Ukraine and the U.S. In fact, my mother was born in Sumy to a Ukrainian father and Russian mother. This business was actually formed for the purpose of importing this particular product. It has always been our intention to celebrate the Ukrainian nature of our product and in some small way contribute to the development of Ukraine as a distinct nation. I will not elaborate on the long process that ended with our using the Russified name except to say it was some version of "not seeing the forest for the trees." Though our Ukrainian counterparts suggested we use Soomskaya Riabinovaya (which was the largest-selling name for their product in Ukraine at the time we started several years ago), USIC takes full responsibility. We should have been more savvy.

It is still not certain we will be able to change the name. You are basically right about the label situation. We are a small company and cannot afford to replace or re-label our stock. If we would have some degree of success in developing Soomskaya as a steady product in the American market, we would like to change the name to something more suitably Ukrainian. If we do, we will announce it with as much fanfare as possible to call attention to the distinction we will be making. This cannot happen for several months; until then we must keep selling the product in stock. It is also a double-edged sword. Changing the name of a new, growing, successful product might not be the smartest move. At the very least, any other products we bring over will have names with transliterations from Ukrainian. I hope other people sensitive to this issue will be as patient and supportive as you.

It turns out you are not the only Ukrainian in Virginia active enough to contact us. Two people from Richmond have also made requests for our product in their stores. Along with special ordering through your stores, you can also order through a non-affiliated service on the Internet at Liqueurs On-line: http://www.gpkg.com or by calling 800-220-3454. It is a little expensive but it can provide you with the chance to sample Soomska. (You don't know how often I kick myself in the head about this name error!)

Bood' mo!
Andrei Hartt
Vice-President for Marketing and Development
United Spirits Import Co.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, February 16, 1997, No. 7, Vol. LXV

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