Prelika in Prešov (source: Korzár)
The last trace of Prešov’s storied liquor-making tradition is fading. Prelika, the city’s final operating distillery and mustard producer, is closing after years of decline, bringing an end to a legacy that began in 1903 with 22 local estate owners, reports Denník N.
Founded as a cooperative with a sizeable annual output for its time – 34,000 hectolitres – the company weathered political upheavals and economic shifts for more than a century. But recent years brought staff cuts and plunging revenues. The company’s turnover fell from €4.5 million to €3.4 million last year, culminating in €470,000 in losses over two years.
Prelika’s products will survive – just not in Prešov.
Production moves west
The Trenčín-based Old Herold, one of Slovakia’s largest distilleries, has acquired Prelika’s spirits, including its signature Horec and Spišiacka brands. The firm expects an annual boost of €2.5 million in sales, Old Herold’s CEO Martin Spurný said. The company is co-owned by Miroslav Maxon, a former finance minister under the HZDS governments, and Rastislav Machunka, a prominent employers’ association leader.
Spirits made by Prelika (source: Prelika)
Meanwhile, mustard production is moving south to Kolárovo. Tomata, a growing food producer led by Zoltán Száraz, has taken over Prelika’s mustard lines, drawn by both the quality of its recipes and a strategic desire to keep them out of competitors’ hands.
“We bought it to stop someone else, like Ján Sabol’s group, from doing so and competing with us,” Száraz explained. The company will maintain Prelika’s signature packaging and guarantee consistency for eastern customers, he added.
Száraz declined to buy Prelika’s spirits division, citing unfamiliarity with alcohol production. Tomata’s acquisition adds roughly €800,000 in new sales annually, strengthening its position as Slovakia’s second-largest mustard brand behind Snico.
The Prešov plant’s closure marks the final chapter of a post-privatisation journey that began in the 1990s with Fragopolis and continued through bankruptcy and revival.
