According to a recent report by the Department of Economic Security at the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, up to 30 percent of the goods sold in Russia’s major retail sectors such as apparel, household chemicals, food, cosmetics and perfumes are counterfeit, while counterfeit designer clothing accounts for 37 percent of the total retail turnover.
During a recent operation called “counterfeit”, the Russian authorities discovered 5,000 violations involving counterfeits and managed to close 73 shops and workshops and suspend 70 websites offering counterfeit products.
The report further states that the Internet has helped reduce the sales of counterfeit video and audio products such as CDs and DVDs in Russia, since most of the video and audio material is available online and can be downloaded directly from there.
Russia is mainly the importer of counterfeit goods rather than the producer. The report mentions China, Singapore, India, as well as Bulgaria, Turkey, Poland and Ukraine as the major sources of counterfeit goods available in Russia. However, local manufacturing of fakes is large in sectors such as alcoholic beverages, medicine and audio and video products.
The Moscow Times reported that the police in the Chukotka region, northeastern Russia, seized a large amount of counterfeit alcohol this month, including 915 liters of grain alcohol, 706 liters of vodka and 454 liters of cognac, while an illegal sausage factory was closed in Moscow earlier this year.
A counterfeit Yves Rocher store is still operating in the Republic of Tuva in south-central Siberia, even though the well-known French perfume maker has complained to the local authorities.
According to the Moscow Times, the most commonly counterfeited perfumes in Russia bear the marks of Christian Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Donna Karan and Nina Ricci.