An event technician receives vaccination requests, an Italian ice cream parlor is experiencing a selfie boom: what it’s like when the name of your own company suddenly dominates the headlines.
Frankfurt/Main – Only a few tables are occupied in the “Taverna Omikron”. Not only Greek food is usually served here, there is also live music and dancing.
But it’s a corona pandemic – the current wave with a virus variant that’s called the cozy basement restaurant: Omikron. “That’s the 15th letter of the Greek alphabet,” says owner Kostas Tsapakidis simply when asked how the tavern got its name. This is not causing any problems at the moment, at least not in addition to those that Corona has already brought.
The “Omikron” has been in existence not far from the Frankfurt Trade Fair for 30 years, and the anniversary should actually be celebrated with musicians from Greece, among others. It is currently unclear when this can happen. Owner Tsapakidis tries it with humor and confidence. “We’re not a variant, we’re the original,” he says with a smile. In his restaurant you are only infected with joie de vivre. The variant will hopefully be the end of the pandemic, he adds more seriously.
The beer brand “Corona Extra” is booming
Corona, Covid, Booster: In just under two years of the crisis, numerous terms have made it into general parlance that have been used to describe companies, products or even people for years. Also for their benefit. The brewing group Anheuser Busch Inbev reported a surge in sales of the “Corona Extra” beer variety. What this is ultimately due to is not certain, said a spokesman. Cars and board games have already been put on the market under the name “Corona” (Latin for “crown” or “wreath”), and numerous places and people have the same name.
The ice cream café “Corona” in the Hessian Taunus town of Oberursel experienced a real selfie boom. The virus of the same name has made it better known, reports Margherita Franceschet, who runs the café with her husband. Presumably, “Corona” was often searched for on the Internet and people would then have discovered the ice cream parlour.
Selfies in front of the ice cream parlour
Many came and photographed the sundaes with “Corona” written on them or took selfies outside the café. Cars stopped on the street for snapshots. When customers jokingly asked if the ice cream was hopefully virus-free, her husband answered, on the contrary, it was very good for your health, says Margherita Franceschet. The ice cream parlor has had his name since 1994. It is reminiscent of the street where her husband grew up.
Not like the corona virus, but similar to the disease it causes, is the name of an Indian who reports misunderstandings, jokes and confusion on Twitter: Kovid Kapoor. With “Covid” as the name for the disease caused by the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) wanted to find a name that does not refer to a person or group of people, geographical region or animal. “My name is Kovid and I’m not a virus,” Kapoor tweeted at the time. When his friends ordered a cake for his 30th birthday, the pastry shop wrote: “Happy birthday, #covid-30”.
The beginning of the campaign for the booster vaccination brought the company for event technology “Booster” in the Hessian Taunusstein more work with the electronic mailbox. He is now contacted by people who want the third prick, as owner Rene Krauss reports. There are also complaints about registrations that went wrong. If the emails are friendly, he answers to clear up the error. He ignores everything else. In the circle of acquaintances, a lot of “booster” jokes were made, reports Krauss.
He hadn’t thought of renaming, says the owner, referring to the company’s almost 30-year history. The name “Booster” goes back to a function in the “KITT” car from the “Knight Rider” series. The pandemic is a very big challenge for his company, says Krauss: “You have to improvise and keep reinventing yourself.” For example, offer digital events and see that you assert yourself. dpa
