How Sweden's alcohol monopoly 'Systemet' came about

You might have noticed that purchasing alcohol is a little different in Sweden from other parts of the world.

Here, all retail alcohol sales happen at the Systembolaget, a government-owned company that has the monopoly on the market.

In the early 20th century, the temperance movement was very strong in Sweden and there was a very strict norm that it was best not to drink at all, says Eva Lenneman, a curator at Stockholm's Museum of Spirits.