Comprehension: Portuguese Retro Design, an Industry Unaffected by the Recession

Portugal is experiencing a design renaissance. Retro designs on everything from tinned food to toys to toiletries have sent sales soaring and given the country, ravaged by unemployment, a ray of hope.

Watch the video and answer the questions below. Decide if the statements are True or False.

1. The dictatorship in Portugal lasted 50 years.

a. True

b. False

2.Re-designing old designs is very fashionable.

a. True

b. False

3. About 17% of the population are without a job although able to work.

a. True

b. False

For transcript and answers see below.

Transcript & Answers

Vintage style is back in fashion in Portugal. Even tins of sardines are being given the treatment. 

'Everything that is remotely on trend that is coming out of Portugal is vintage, there's been a revival and it's really popular. All the shops for tourists are full of vintage products.' 
This shop has been going for 83 years. The owner decided, long ago, to keep the original designs and pictures on its tinned fish. It's a good way to acknowledge tradition while also satisfying tourists on the look-out for something different. 
'It's a bit like stepping back in time. We re-designed our tins 3 or 4 years ago, and our designers were told to change the design without really changing it.' The concept of taking something old and re-packaging it as new is the idea behind this shop in Lisbon. After studying the history of Portuguese design the owner was inspired. 
'During the 50 year long dictatorship our economy was fairly stagnant. Most brands didn't really have to strive to be competitive so rarely changed their designs. Bringing this kind of packaging up to date is all the rage these days.'
 Toys, exercise books, perfumes, soaps, kitchen items… it could have all come from your grandmother's cupboard. The visitors love it but so do the locals. 'It's great - it helps us remember our roots.'
 While the financial crisis hit the rest of the country retro designs were key to the success of Claus de Porto soaps. The company almost went bust 20 years ago but now their products are sold all over the world. 
'After the crisis struck we began to take a closer look at our history. Every day we get a bit closer to our roots, towards what I call our pedigree, because it’s exactly this pedigree that our clients look for more and more.'
Battered by recession and with unemployment running at around 17 %, this retro renaissance is giving Portugal and its people a much-needed lift and injection of pride. 

Answers:

1. a
2. a
3. a

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