About Jelinek Cork
Corkstore.com and corkstore.ca are the ecommerce sites for Jelinek Cork Group, a company that specializes in cork and cork products. Both corkstore.com and corkstore.ca ship worldwide. The Cork Store was established in 1996 as one of the first ecommerce sites to specialize in cork and cork products. Since then, it has evolved into what it is today, offering a wide range of cork products to customers around the world.
OUR HISTORY
Jelinek Cork Group was founded in 1855 in the province of Bohemia within the former Austro-Hungarian Empire but known today as the Czech Republic. That area of the world was known then, as it is today, as the capital of world beer consumption. Cork stoppers were supplied by Jelinek to the leading breweries of the world when beer bottles were still sealed with natural corks. Distilleries and wineries quickly learned the advantages of using natural cork in sealing their own bottles and Jelinek Cork was soon also supplying these two industries, as well as the cosmetic, spice, and food markets with their stopper requirements.
During the occupation of Czechoslovakia by the communists in 1948, Jelinek Cork was nationalized and the Jelinek family escaped to Canada to find freedom and a new start. The new North American company was started and prospered throughout Canada and the USA and began expanding into other countries. In 1989, with the collapse of the Iron Curtain and the ousting of the communist regime, Jelinek Cork Group re-established a division of JCG in Eastern Europe. Jelinek Cork Group today has facilities in the United States, Canada, the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic, the United Kingdom and of course, Portugal - in the heart of the cork producing region.
New and Exciting Products
Over the years Jelinek Cork has introduced new and exciting products to vastly different market areas. The automotive industry and engine parts (gaskets, carburetor and level gauge floats), specialty components (for musical instruments, batteries, sporting goods and shoe trades), industrial goods and building products (decorative floor and wall coverings, acoustical, anti-static and insulating materials) as well as numerous products for the stationery and home improvement markets are a few of the industries being supplied by the Jelinek Cork Group throughout the world today.
JCG is solely dedicated to the promotion, production and distribution of all cork products. The group specializes and works only with cork – from the forest level to the final product – making JCG perhaps the most innovative cork company in the world.
Recognition of Responsibilities
Despite being one of the largest and most active global suppliers and distributors of cork items, JCG is always aware of its Social Responsibilities as well as its Responsibility to the Environment and the continued preservation and well being of the cork oak tree, the raw material source for all cork products. It recognizes the uniqueness of cork. The company mission remains dedicated to the preservation of cork, an environmentally and ecologically friendly renewable resource.
Over the years, JCG has participated in a number of conservation initiatives related to the cork industry. These initiatives always have the same objective … no pollution, no wastage of raw materials, and recycling whenever possible. For example, JCG was a primary participant in an innovative environmental program called Bag-a-Cork which involved the collection and recycling of used cork bottle stoppers. The Bag-a-Cork initiative is the first of such in North America. This initiative has since evolved.
In response to the large number of inquiries received from the public, Jelinek Cork launched a new recycled cork program in December, 2008 which is still in action today. Community groups, schools and other not for profit organizations are encouraged to participate in this natural cork recycling initiative. This program helps community groups raise funds while bringing awareness towards natural cork - an environmentally friendly, renewable and recyclable resource.
Jelinek Cork Group promotes the use of environmentally friendly, sustainable and renewable products in the construction industry. The company fully supports the initiatives of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Rating System. Learn more about Jelinek Cork and the LEED rating system.
Research and development, environmental preservation, quality control, customer service and value may all be a cliché but are the true testimonial of the company’s 150 years in business. The JCG motto holds steadfast: “If you like nature, you will love cork” and the company’s belief in the environment remains equally strong. Its line of cork products are all manufactured only “from trees that go on living”.