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The way to a man's heart: how the Soviet travel agency ‘Sputnik’ struggled to feed Western tourists

In 1958, a new travel agency, Sputnik, was created in the Soviet Union to deal specifically with foreign youth. During the years of East/West competition in the consumer sphere, the provision of food and drink played an important part in the Soviet tourist industry. The two were symbolic, a reflection of the state of the economy and therefore closely tied to Khrushchev's desire ‘to catch and overtake America’. Actually implementing this goal, however, was no easy task. When it came to feeding tourists, Sputnik faced challenges in two areas: the acquisition of quality food and the provision of service. If unsuccessful in either realm the implications for the group's propagandistic effectiveness could be profound. The agency hoped that young Western tourists, if content with the service, would return home to dispel negative images of Soviet Russia. During its formative years (1958–1964), Sputnik benefited from the unprecedented nationwide campaign intended to improve the dining service and prefabricated food industry, and the agency could claim some tangible results. Nevertheless, a complete success was never achieved because of economic, technological, and motivational issues, as well as the influence of Cold War tensions on Sputnik's negotiations with its Western partners.