Is it profitable to transport goods from Finland. How to start a trading business with Finland. Meat and sausages

Opening your own store is one way to make a profit and do a pretty interesting job. The system is simple - buy goods at a wholesale price and sell at a higher price. In order to compete, it is necessary to offer the buyer a product in the right place at an affordable price, complementing all this with good service.

Opening a Finnish goods store is a very original idea. The entrepreneur will receive not only a good profit, but also learn a lot of interesting and useful things about the culture and life of the people of Finland. You should not immediately think about opening a supermarket - for a start it will be enough to have your own small but profitable store.

Location, registration and financial settlements

The key point in this kind of business is the place where the Finnish goods store will be located. There is a choice: to rent a separate room or a place in a shopping center. The first option is cheaper, but the shopping center has many more advantages: location in a crowded place, convenient parking, and an intense flow of customers. Therefore, it is worth stopping at this option.

The store must look attractive to the buyer. The layout should provide a comfortable stay of the buyer inside, and also attract outside. You can hire a good designer who will not only emphasize the uniqueness of the store, but also help create an atmosphere in it that meets Finnish traditions.

An entrepreneur must be clearly aware that most often at the initial stages of developing their own business, unforeseen expenses arise, so it is necessary to draw up a business plan to take into account all the nuances. Initial capital can be taken in the form of a loan from a bank or loan from friends, but in the end, the entrepreneur must pay off debts, otherwise he will not be able to continue his business.

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Advertising, name and suppliers

Advertising is the most important component in relations with the buyer. In order to get regular customers, you need to convey the "zest" of the Finnish goods store. At the world level, in trade, an entrepreneur spends from 2 to 5% of the turnover on advertising, so it is worth planning this obligatory expense from the very beginning.

The name matters a lot. A Finnish goods store can have either an interesting Russian or Finnish name. This aspect depends only on the creativity of the entrepreneur.

It is easier to open this kind of store if the entrepreneur has any connections in Finland, as it will be easier to resolve the issue with suppliers, because the quality of imported goods depends on these people.

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Legal aspects of retail

An important parameter is the legal aspects of trade. Each entrepreneur must comply with all requirements that are imposed by state laws and government regulations on retailers. You must first familiarize yourself with the following laws:

1. "Law on Consumer Protection".
2. "Sales by Model".
3. "List of goods subject to certification".
4. "List of technically complex goods".
5. "Compensation for damage caused due to defects in goods, works or services."
6. "Rules for the sale of certain types of goods."
7. "List of Durable Goods".
8. "List of non-food products of good quality, not subject to return and exchange."

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Personnel and security

Staff must be selected wisely. Suitable people are not necessarily with work experience, you can give an opportunity to young people who are easily trained and open to everything new with a creative approach to trading, which will undoubtedly affect your profits.

Do not forget about the safety of the store and staff, so you should pay attention to the correct installation of a fire system, alarms, you can install video surveillance cameras.

What Finnish goods can be sold in the store?

According to various surveys, Finnish household appliances and fashionable clothes are currently in demand in Russia.

Household appliances in Finland are very high quality and easy to use. These are TVs, and computers, and cell phones, and navigators, and much more. It will not be difficult to buy these goods in Finland - the prices are quite reasonable. Clothing from this country is in demand everywhere, especially for the winter period - very warm and beautiful things are produced in the republic in large quantities due to the insufficiently favorable climate. It can be winter boots, hats, jackets, mittens, etc.

Very often, when going on a trip, people wonder what to bring from there.

Before you just wander through all the shops, it is worth knowing:

• what the visited country or city is famous for;
• what products can be purchased only here;
• what local businesses produce.

After that, you need to decide on your budget, and only then go shopping.

Finland is rich in products of its own production, and most of them are of high quality. much better than other foreign analogues. Their range is so huge that it is impossible to list them all. Consider the most popular Finnish products.

List of souvenirs from Finland worth bringing

There are a lot of souvenirs in Finland, and goods with the symbols of the country and products from local craftsmen and enterprises are especially popular.

Here is a list of souvenirs that you can buy and bring home:

• Finnish tableware of famous brands Arabia, Hackman, Rörstrand, Höganäs Keramik, Høyang-Polaris and BodaNova owned by Iittala.
• Finnish clothing by Marimekko and reindeer skins.
• Edible souvenir products, sweets, alcoholic products.
• Natural stone products.
• High-quality household chemicals and cosmetics.
• Sauna accessories and accessories.

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Finnish clothes

An excellent gift brought from Finland will be the famous Finnish clothing with traditional ornaments for this country in the form of snowflakes or deer.

These can be sweaters, pullovers, vests made of natural wool and warm well in the cold season, winter outerwear that is of good quality or other things from well-known Finnish brands:

• The Marimekko brand is known for its colorful prints;
• Outerwear, sportswear and home textiles from Luhta;
• Outerwear, home textiles and bedding brand Joutsen Finland;
• Manufacturers of quality children's clothing Reima and Kerri;
• Footwear for the whole Kuoma family, designed for outdoor activities.

The undoubted leader in the ranking of the most famous Finnish manufacturers worldwide is the Marimekko trademark. It produces colorful and vibrant apparel, as well as home goods, textiles, bags and other products.

Shops of this brand can be found in almost all major shopping centers in Finland.

This company works since 1951, at the same time, the first show of her collection from designer Maya Isola took place. She also became the author of the company's business card of the "Poppies" print, used in various color compositions on clothes and textiles.

This created a real sensation among clothing manufacturers, and crossed out the opinion about the gray and boring Finnish fashion.

Products for the kitchen

The comfort of Finnish interiors is made up of many details, one of which is dishes.

Its advantages are the following facts:

• everything from a teaspoon to a free-standing ceramic vase has its own style;
• it is made from natural materials emphasizing the natural culture of Finnish masters;
• most often, natural colors and ornaments are presented on the dishes;
• high value in the world market.

One of the leading manufacturers of tableware on the market is the Finnish company Iittala, which owns several brands:

• Arabia- Finnish factory producing ceramics and porcelain with the same name.
• Trademark Hackman, under which kitchen utensils are produced, including frying pans, pots, cutlery, famous for their quality and durability.
• Rörstrand brand porcelain.
• Hoganas Keramik.
• Hyang-Polaris.

In the company stores of this manufacturer, you can also find mugs with the image of the famous Finnish fairy-tale character Mumiy Troll.

Wooden kitchen items such as juniper coasters with antibacterial properties, as well as cutlery, such as spoons, forks and spatulas for pans, are well bought.

Clothes and underwear

Finnish clothes, and especially winter things, are very popular all over the world. This is not surprising, since a large territory of this country is located beyond the Arctic Circle, and snow has been lying on the street for more than six months.

That is why the Finns take care of their health and create winter clothes, the advantages of which are:

• good thermal insulation;
• environmentally friendly materials;
• water resistance;
• ease and practicality;
• dirt-repellent properties.

Pros of buying clothes in Finland:

• it has high quality and practicality;
• in this country it is almost impossible to stumble upon a fake;
• clothes of famous brands are much cheaper than in Russia;
• Stores often have sales, and some items from last year's collections can be purchased at a significant discount.

Having been in Finland, it is impossible not to appreciate the bed linen produced by local manufacturers. The most famous is Finlayson.

The underwear of this brand is made from 100% cotton or satin, and only natural, environmentally friendly dyes are used in its production.

Finnish bed linen manufacturers primarily care about the health of the nation, because their products do not cause allergies and skin inflammations.

Ruskovilla AO produces excellent warm underwear, socks, mittens and other things for people of all ages from high quality wool and silk.

Food

Finnish food, which is of high quality, excellent taste and freshness, is in great demand among tourists.

The most common are:

• fish dishes, for example, smoked salmon, red caviar;
• meat products, among which Finnish sausage is popular, poronkyaristyus - thinly sliced ​​\u200b\u200bvenison;
• flour products;
• milk products;
• chocolate;
• products from berries, jam.

Finnish bakery products are especially appreciated by lovers of a healthy diet. It is unlikely that you will see fluffy white buns on store shelves, since most of the breads are baked mainly from rye flour, but among the popular pastries there are also products made from wheat flour.

The most popular are:

• round rye bread with a hole in the middle;
• Lapon bread in appearance, reminiscent of a wheat cake with several holes;
• Karelian pies with rice or potato fillings;
• hapankorppu or sour rusk.

The main advantage of Finnish bread products is their rather long shelf life, which allows them to be stored for a long time.

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stone products

Good souvenirs in Finland are considered natural stone products talc chloride. The beauty of its properties lies in the fact that this stone is capable of retaining heat or cold for a sufficiently long time.

• frying pans, made from this stone, it is good to use for long-term preservation of hot food in them.
• Coasters for hot and cold will not allow food to cool or heat up quickly.
• Cups keep hot drinks, and beer mugs will not allow alcohol to heat up, for example, when visiting a sauna.

Products

A large number of food products are brought from Finland.

Here are the most common types of products bought in this country:

• Red fish. There are a lot of shops in Finland with a wide variety of fish on their shelves. Trout, salmon and salmon are especially popular. It is important to know that fish and meat products can only be imported into Russia in vacuum packaging.
• Red caviar, always fresh and much cheaper here. Important is the fact that due to the lack of preservatives in it, caviar cannot be stored for a long time.
• Dried venison.
• Natural coffe, which the Finns treat in a special way and carefully select only the best varieties.
• Berries. Finland is rich in berries such as cloudberries, blueberries and lingonberries. It is good to buy jam from these berries.
• Alcoholic products. The most popular mint liqueur "Minttu" with a strength of 50 degrees is considered. Lapponia liqueurs with blueberries, cloudberries and lingonberries, cranberry vodka Finlandia, as well as homemade beer Kotikalja are in demand.
• Chocolate and candies. Famous and world-famous Finnish chocolate Fazer in a branded blue wrapper, as well as handmade chocolate Kultasuklaa.

Liquorice

Finland is famous for its peculiar sweets with the addition of licorice. In fact, it is a licorice extract that has healing properties. The taste of such products is slightly salty and not everyone will like it.

Chocolate and sweets with the addition of liquorice can be found at almost every step. Finns eat them even with a sore throat.

In Finland, the cost of baby food, diapers, child car seats and strollers is much lower. Reduced prices for olive oil.

dietary supplements

Among the high quality products in Finland, one can single out dietary supplements and a variety of vitamins. The cost of these goods is much lower than in Russia, but the efficiency of the application is higher.

Moreover, when buying these products in Finland, you can be calm, because, for example, in a jar of bee pollen there will be exactly bee pollen without any additional impurities.

If you have decided to buy such products for yourself, then it is best to do this in a shopping center than in a pharmacy, since in the latter the cost of dietary supplements and vitamins is very high.

All medicines in Finland are certified and of excellent quality.

Known here:

• vitamin complexes Omega for children and adults,
• fish fat,
• vitamins Multi-Tabs and

Sauna accessories

When talking about Finland, it is simply impossible to mention traditional Finnish sauna. Accessories for a trip there are sorted out very quickly.

A good souvenir purchased among such products will be aromatic and essential oils, brushes, tar, towels, hats and brooms. Some people specially go to Finland to buy stoves and stones for their baths.

Household chemicals and cosmetics

Good quality is possessed by Finnish household chemicals, which are very different in efficiency from their Russian counterparts.

Often brought from Finland:

• various washing powders
• cleaners and detergents,
• tablets for washing dishes in dishwashers.

Professional hair cosmetics from Sim Sensitive, including shampoos, balms, masks, have good efficiency. For people prone to skin allergies, according to reviews, Dermatologica cosmetics, which do not contain harmful substances for the skin, are well suited.

Mschik's professional decorative cosmetics are also good.

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Souvenirs

Finland is a country in which the choice of souvenirs is simply huge. Leaving here, for sure, you will want to take away not only items and things bought for yourself, but also souvenirs as a gift for your family and friends.

Choosing the right Finnish gift

Here are some ideas for great gifts brought back from Finland:

• Cooks. This is an original wooden mug made from a burl that forms on a birch trunk. It is cut by hand and worn on the belt while hiking in the forest. To tie it to a belt, two holes are made in the handle, and a cord is threaded through them.
• Finca. Among the Russians, such a name has formed for a traditional Finnish knife with a hand-carved wooden handle. The Finns call such knives “puukko”, and they are especially popular with the indigenous people of Suomi, who cannot do without them either when hunting or fishing. This gift is perfect for a man.
• Finnish vodka "Konskenkervf", which cannot be found on Russian shelves.
• Felt slippers. Such a gift will be especially appreciated by grandparents. In appearance, these slippers resemble Russian felt boots, very comfortable, warm and cozy.
• "Marimekko". As a gift, you can present a piece of clothing, dishes, a bag or other designer item in the national style from this company.
• Homespun carpet "Ryuyu". Finns decorated their homes with these bright handmade carpets several centuries ago. True, such a gift will not be cheap for you.
• Souvenirs depicting the fabulous Finnish hero Moomin Troll or with pictures of the famous game and cartoon Angry Birds will definitely appreciate the younger generation.

• For the female half of the population high-quality Finnish cosmetics and perfumery will be a wonderful gift.
• An original gift for the home decorations made of deer skins and horns will become. A deer skin hanging on the wall, as well as interior decoration items made of deer or elk antlers will create a special atmosphere in the house and pleasantly surprise your guests.
• Bath accessories, among which a variety of hats, brooms, slippers, essential oils will definitely come in handy for lovers of going to the sauna.

How many products can be brought from Finland?

It is important to know not only what souvenirs and goods can be bought in Finland, but also how to take them out to Russia from there.

There are several rules for transporting products across the border:

• per person finished products of animal origin, which include canned food, butter, margarine, sausages, meat, fish and seafood, finished dairy products, are allowed to be transported across the border no more than 5 kilograms.
• Meat, fish products and cheese are exported only in vacuum packaging.
• For the transport of animal feed the same restrictions apply in hand luggage and luggage of passengers.
• When it comes to products of non-animal origin, for example, furniture, then it will be possible to take out for free from Finland no more than 50 kg worth no more than 1,500 euros. If you carry more cargo, you will have to pay extra for it.

Import of alcohol and cigarettes to Russia

There are also certain rules and quantitative restrictions on the import of alcohol and cigarettes into Russia, and they depend on how many people are carrying luggage:

• No extra charge you can take out no more than 3 liters of alcohol for each citizen who has reached the age of 17.
• tobacco products you can bring to Russia no more than 200 cigarettes or 50 cigarillos (cigars) or no more than 250 grams of tobacco per person over the age of 18. Or all of the above listed tobacco products weighing no more than 250 grams per person who has reached the age of 18.

Two years ago, on August 6, 2014, the word “prohibited” was revived in Russia: President Putin signed a law imposing a food embargo - a ban on the import of certain types of agricultural products, raw materials and food from the European Union, the USA, Australia, Canada and Norway into the country.

Judging by the windows of a number of specialized stores and ads on Avito, despite the ban, the market managed to solve the problem with the shortage of certain types of sanctioned goods in half in these two years. We have already learned how to legally deliver sanctioned cheeses to Russia by mail. This time, for the second anniversary of the ban, The Village spoke with a St. Petersburg supplier of sanctioned products. He anonymously told how goods from Finland are delivered to the Russian market, who transports them, how customs officers treat this, and why European cheese means so much to Russian consumers.

Illustrations

olesya shchukina

About shuttle traders and giant suppliers

It is difficult to talk about any universal experience in this market. There are very small carriers, they carry through their channels certain volumes of sanctioned products for very small sale - by private orders. It has its own specifics of work. The most common model is dozens of bus tours, minibuses with shuttles. Previously, clothes, electronics were transported from Finland in this way, and now they are also sanctioned. Formally, everything is legal: on the bus, a brigade of decent citizens with visas, each buys the maximum amount of goods allowed for transportation for personal use (individuals can import 50 kilograms of food into Russia duty-free, but not more than 1,500 euros) according to a pre-approved with the tour organizer list. Often the organizers pay something to shuttle traders, often they simply do not take money from them for delivery to Finland and “rolling” a visa. Then the purchased goods are transferred to the organizer of the "tour" - he already distributes them to customers.

There is a middle level like us - we work with private buyers and small businesses like cafes and restaurants. The shuttle model is also occasionally used, but not always. Order volumes are getting bigger, and organizing numerous cars with people is no longer very profitable. It is necessary, so to speak, to look for other ways, to negotiate, to organize direct deliveries.

And there are quite large ones that work with retail. Judging by the number of unauthorized products, these are real giants - a separate world with its own rules and agreements. Perhaps they are partly the former official importers who reacted to the sanctions in this way, or maybe not. But the fact remains. Recently it was reported that 50 tons of banned, sanctioned fruits and vegetables were found in St. Petersburg. These are volumes that clearly arrive in the city centrally.

About logistics and income

What is the main feature of the Russian-Finnish border? Through it, for a very long time, for decades, goods have been transported to our country by shuttle. That is, in addition to official suppliers who work according to their own rules, there are old well-established channels for the delivery of products, which, let's say, bypass some formalities. These channels worked even before food sanctions, the same cheeses were transported in this way before them. It’s just that after the sanctions, the niche of shuttle traders changed: if earlier those who needed limited lots of premium goods at prices below the market worked with them, now they are those who, in principle, need this product. From the niche of a profitable supplier, they moved into the niche of a non-alternative source of the product.

There is not much to say about the logistics itself. At the first stage, there is completely legal work in Finland and other Western countries: suppliers are found, contracts are concluded with them, temporary warehouses are rented. Small buyers often work with retail chains and buy certain volumes there. There are services that send goods by mail, but this is a completely different story and meager volumes. Those that are larger are already working with wholesale lots. Further transportation, we rent small trucks.

The border is the most closed stage. What can I say here? We have been working with this world for a long time, I know many people, everyone understands that “killing” a product is a real crime. Therefore, most often, given all the necessary nuances, it is delivered to Russia without hindrance.

At the next stage, distribution and sale already begins. We promote goods through Avito, but recently we are increasingly going from client to client, word of mouth is working. The main buyers are some specialized stores, restaurants, catering companies, there are not very large hotels (by the way, there is information that large city hotels themselves receive the necessary goods almost without hindrance - this is, they say, the go-ahead of the customs service, and it, in turn, asked the city to reduce reputational costs).

Of course, as a result, everyone believes that experienced shuttle traders got rich instantly on the sanctions. This is a strong exaggeration. Demand has increased significantly, there has been more work, but the number of administrative barriers associated with various costs has also increased.

If we talk about our border and work with Finland, then cheese is the key word. There are various other areas of work, but everything revolves around cheese. I myself love cheese, but I never suspected that it meant so much to the Russian consumer. Actually, the main impressions of our work after the sanctions are precisely the cheese hype and how it affects people.

You can remember many stories. For example, we still supply tame for an elderly woman - a professor at the Theater Academy. For some reason, she prefers only him, he is very important to her. Sanctions led to a family tragedy: Tamiya was already scarce in Russia, and after them he completely disappeared. The old woman was going to sell the apartment and move to Savoy, but the relatives caught on in time, found us, called and agreed on regular deliveries to St. Petersburg. Once every two months, we clearly bring a solid box to the professor.

There are several Italian families who live in St. Petersburg, they have business here. They tried to carry regularly allowed volumes, but quickly gave up and now use our services. For them, as I understand it, this is a matter of daily nutrition, in fact, life and death. One works as a manager at a large local factory, and when anti-sanctions happened, his relatives were in shock. His wife demanded to go back to his homeland, he could not quit his career, the family was falling apart. And here we - in general, kept the relationship with the guys.

In addition to cheeses, of course, other products are also brought in. Fruits, vegetables, meat products, sausages, fish. Fish, after cheese, is the most sought-after commodity, but it is the least transported. The administrative barrier has already grown, and the fish requires special conditions for transportation and storage. I don't care for her.

About the law

One gets the impression that they were allowed to turn a blind eye to such a situation. Of course, you can't look up. Raids and checks go on all the time, but there is an important point: most of them, at least those that I know, take place at the second stage of the chain. Not at first - when the goods are transported across the border. And on the second - when it is in the warehouse. This is where a raid can come under certain circumstances. The goods are withdrawn, but what happens to him next is the second question. In fact, most often it remains on the market. Of course, according to the official version, it should be destroyed. But, for example, a story is known when a whole warehouse with sanctions products was found in the port of St. Petersburg, which, according to all the papers, should not be physically there. I suspect this is the result of such raids. Some carry, others seize, then sell with the same success.

But further, when the product is already in some stores, we can assume that it is legalized. Try asking in big grocery stores about hard cheese from the display case, which is cut up and sold on the spot. I specifically studied the tactics of sellers. Often they answer like this: here is, say, a solid Mordovian, but there is an imported one. You look at the label next to the second: how is it, some kind of madness is written - “parmesan, Vologda”! But most often you were told the truth, this imported one is exactly what honest parmesan is, straight from Italy. They can also say: here is ours, but here is a good one. It is also immediately clear what is at stake.

In the very question, is it an imported product, there is nothing that could confuse the seller. There are several obvious gaps in the legal regulation of counter-sanctions, and it is not so easy to pin down the seller. There was a famous story that set an important precedent. "Magnet" sold French pickled cheese in the Leningrad region. The networks were fined for this, and she successfully challenged this measure in court. The court decided that the government limited only the import of such products, but not the sale - therefore, there was no corpus delicti, follows from the court documents.

There are two types of restrictions regarding customs. Figuratively speaking, the first gave on the head and knocked out. The second - showed a "goat" to crap, and then the world - the world, so that good people do not hold evil

About relations with customs

Somehow we got into an unpleasant situation, and due to inconsistency in our actions, we were stopped with a customs check. I can’t tell you all the details, but I will never forget the eyes of the inspector girl who saw what we were driving. It was immediately clear that she already imagined a container from which a fiery flame bursts out, destroying this cheese richness. Formally, she formalized everything correctly, delayed the car, but refused to record a personal examination, referred to poor health and transferred us along the chain to other specialists. Then we smoked outside customs and she said rather vehemently, “I think it's a crime to burn food. I try not to contribute to this and not to accept such cases.

I then understood a lot about how everything works. In fact, there are a lot of normal people in customs. First, they treat what is happening as a crazy curiosity. Burn dorblu?! Yes, it would be better for him to stay on the other side of the border than like this (and indeed, I know, there were cases when cars were simply turned around in those cases when there was no way to miss). Secondly, there are clear signals from above that allow them to work on sanctions issues in an easy mode. News that another batch of food was burned comes every evening, but you can’t see the picture, and you have to understand that these are more PR events than reality.

As my customs buddy says, there are two kinds of prohibitions that apply to customs. Figuratively speaking, the first one hit him in the head and knocked him out: this is a rare case, he says, all people around are humane. The second - showed the "goat" to crap, and then the world - the world, so that good people do not hold evil. Here are the sanctions products just relate to the second case.

The food embargo has created problems for some Russians and additional opportunities for others. A DP correspondent traveled to Finland in the trunk of one of the cars and saw how St. Petersburg residents carry prohibited products across the border - for themselves and on order.

Well, get in the trunk! Yana tells me.

There are no other places!

I grunt and climb into the back seat of a minivan, and from there to a folding place in the trunk. There are few places. There is a huge package stuck to my side, pasted over with a tape "Do not open in the European Union." He still has a whole stack of packages up to the very ceiling of the car. They have everything: a lot of hard cheese, milk cartons, cans of coffee, meatballs, sausages, a dozen packs of thermal underwear, chocolate and a few packs of Fairy. After the border, it will be possible to issue a Duty Free check on them, and then open, repack, and then the package will no longer rest against my side.

But still to the border a whole day of shopping in Finland. "I bought this car specifically for trips to Finland. The main requirements were a spacious trunk for good shopping in Finland and comfort on long trips. The previous family car, the Ford sedan, did not meet my requirements. But here the trunk is just huge - everything fits in it, what we bought," says Yana.

Business loves silence

"If this is not in Petersburg, then you need to hit the road to Finland, "- such an idea came to many immediately after the introduction of the August embargo. Instantly, headlines appeared in the Internet media from the category "Tourists at the border lost quail, duck and pheasant delicacies" or "300 kg of Finnish and Estonian fish "deployed" at the border over the weekend". But the owners of small online stores offering the delivery of goods from Finland did not have to arrange anything. Only in the social network "Vkontakte" there are dozens of groups offering to bring everything you need. This business is not very public. Many of the entrepreneurs, to whom the correspondent of "DP" turned for comments, answered with a categorical refusal. "And you did not think that none of those who are engaged in this are not looking for popularity?" One of the owners of online stores asked. More Most of all, entrepreneurs are afraid of customs: according to the rules, it is possible to import goods without duties only if they are not a commercial batch.

"I don't break the law because I bring goods to order and I don’t have any commercial parties,” says Yana. She is the administrator of just one of these stores in social networks. But in any case, there are fears that customs will start to find fault with those who often travel to Finland and constantly imports of goods are very high among businessmen, they are especially strong among those who then sell these goods in retail outlets. Otherwise, there would be much more nit-picking," one of the businessmen, who asked not to be named, said.

Friends and jerboas

There are hundreds in Yanina's store goods, or rather, their photographs: cheese, tea, coffee, pet food, milk formula, alcohol, baby food, sausage and much more. The technology is simple: the client selects goods from photographs and sends the order to Yana, she collects orders for a week, and on Saturday early in the morning she gets into the car and goes to Lappeenranta or Imatra. We're driving from Prizma to the Laplandia store.

How many orders are there? - I ask Yana from the trunk, looking at the packages.

20 - 25 people ordered.

All these goods are brought six people - Yana and her friends. According to the rules of the Russian customs, the rate of duty-free import is 50 kg. We're just getting in. Friends have their own interests: one needs to roll back a visa, another needs to buy winter clothes, and a third needs to pick up the ordered equipment. It turns out a private mini-shop tour. When enough friends are not recruited, Yana takes her husband and child: even a baby can import 50 kg for personal needs without duties.

Some group owners According to Yana, strangers are often taken into the car. They roll back the visa for free, and for this they serve as souls, on which they "hang" another 50 kg of purchases. “Riding a jerboa is very unpleasant. You lose the opportunity to do what you want. Roughly speaking, they are told at the beginning of the trip: “You carry a maximum of 5 kg for yourself, and we only visit those stores and wholesale depots that we need " she says.

As part of an organized tour group

Get your passports ready. We Now let's cross the border. We will need to get off the bus and go to that building over there, the whole bus instructs the shopping tour guide.

And you can smoke will be? - impatiently ask from the back rows.

You can't smoke here! Only at that pole! And you need to quickly - before our turn has passed, - the guide reacts.

early morning of the same day. Svetogorsk. The way of the shop-tour bus from the metro station "Chernaya Rechka" to the border with Finland takes 2.5 hours. All the way we are instructed: "I remind you that raw meat cannot be imported into Russia", "We will not stop by Duty Free: according to Finnish rules, you cannot buy alcohol if you are in the country for less than 72 hours", "Lappeenranta will be the last city on our route" . The guide also checks everyone's passports: "Fine is taken from us if something is wrong with a person's visa," she explains. Along the way, the guide collects applications for goods at wholesale prices. Anyone can look at the list of goods, leave an order, give money. While everyone is walking in Lappeenranta, the bus will go to the wholesale base and the driver with a guide will buy goods. The first stop on the Finnish side is the area of ​​three shops. Stop at each - half an hour.

Natalya Stepanovna, look, take trout? - among the bus passengers there is even a school teacher with her son and his three classmates.

Well, this is some expensive. Let's take a walk and see," she says.

In general, among the passengers of the shop-tour Most buses are women. The last stop is the fish supermarket. After him, a persistent smell of fish spreads through the bus.

Who uploaded the fish to the salon? - the driver is indignant.

What is it? - Passengers are perplexed.

So she smells now for the whole bus. Yes, and in the luggage compartment it will be better preserved - it is colder there, - the driver explains. After an hour and a half of walking around the area of ​​three hypermarkets, the luggage compartment of the bus is completely filled. Packets, packages of milk and cream, mops, detergents, coffee cans and fish evacuated from the passenger compartment are mixed there. Next stop - Imatra. Here the guide seems to have been literally changed. Instead of detailed instructions, she begins the tour: "Look to the right. This is the Vuoksa River. And this is a dam on its natural course. Every year a water release ceremony takes place here. The floodgates open - to the music, everything is very solemn. And the river rushes along its historical channel " . On the way, we also learn about the Civil War in Finland, a haunted hotel, the unhappy love of a Finnish woman and an engineer, we bring a guy and a girl to a water park, listen to a story about Mannerheim. So we get to Lappeenranta.

We meet at 5 o'clock here, at the shopping center "Gallery", - the guide admonishes. Everyone runs to the shops in the city center. The bus leaves for the wholesale base. And I run to the hypermarket.

Second Life

Yana collects orders with carts. She has a complete list of ordered items on her phone. Five heads of cheese, 10 packs of cream, 15 cans of coffee and a lot more. Methodically, rack after rack, she goes through the entire hypermarket. At the same time, a significant part of the orders falls on baby food. “We have a very narrow assortment in Russia. At the same time, good food costs conditionally 40 rubles for an 80-gram jar, and here 175 g costs 15 rubles. And the quality is the same,” says Yana. However, some prefer not to carry it: for this you need to understand the assortment, but Yana, while raising a child, studied dozens of brands and knows what to advise. In addition, baby food in glass jars is heavy, and sometimes it is better to take more money-intensive products instead - chocolate, for example.

What is the average order value? - We are just standing at the checkout of the last store. A couple of kilometers from here - the border and customs.

He is not. The amounts vary from 200 to 7.5 thousand rubles, - Yana answers. At the same time, out of more than 10 thousand people in the group of regular customers, she has about 200. And they order differently: one asks to bring something every week, the other - once a month.

As a result, the business is stable, but not too profitable and troublesome. Fixed costs - depreciation of the car, gasoline and "green card". In addition, entrepreneurs spend a lot of time delivering goods - Yana and her husband do this in the evenings. But most often, customers come and pick up everything on their own.

Yana says it works earn a second monthly salary. From Monday to Friday, she works in a completely different place.

Children's starts

I had a visa, and I had to roll it back. I asked around my friends who needed to bring what. I wanted to pay for the trip. And then I decided to do it, - says Tatyana about a typical way to start a business for the delivery of goods from Finland.

Did you manage to pay back?

Partially. The biggest expenses - "green card", 1670 rubles, and gasoline - 1.5 thousand rubles, - she says.

Tatiana has a small group for 1.5 thousand people. The main assortment - children's clothing and products. For Tatyana, trips to Finland are also additional income. She goes shopping about once every 2 weeks. “More often I don’t even want to. I have two children. They also need to be taken care of. In general, it just seems that it’s easy to transport goods,” Tatyana complains.

Communicating with the owners of online stores Finnish goods, time after time you are convinced that this is a typical business for young mothers. From the outside, everything is simple: the starting capital is 100 thousand rubles for the first purchases. But the market is highly competitive. “There was a case when hackers hacked into my group and deleted 3,000 photos with goods,” Yana recalls.

Queue course

So, what's our course today? - Yana freezes in front of the counter in Lapland with a head of cheese, takes out a calculator and starts counting.

55 by the Central Bank, I suggest. Yana stands for a minute, twists the cheese, and yet decides: "I'll take a try, what if the customers like it."

Order structure after introduction The food embargo has changed, but not drastically. “The main difference is that hard cheeses like Oltermanni are being ordered much more often. At one time, one person can ask for five or six heads of cheese for the whole family. They began to order 30-40% more,” says Yana. “Besides, one time began to ask more often to bring ricotta, but the demand continued until Belarusian analogues appeared.

According to entrepreneurs, August, orders for lactose-free milk and dairy products increased sharply. And, although the ban on their import to Russia has already been formally lifted, news from the category periodically appears on news feeds: "The Rosselkhoznadzor Administration for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region has banned the import of a batch of lactose-free sour cream into the Russian Federation." Thus, the demand for lactose-free milk, yoghurts and sour cream has not disappeared.

Parmesan is also regularly ordered, brie, camembert, roquefort, cheddar, pecorino and other expensive cheeses. They try to carry little fish: there are a lot of restrictions on it, in particular, you cannot import raw fish.

Despite the rise in the rate euro, entrepreneurs feel confident: now they are even more needed by the people of St. Petersburg. “Yes, the rate is growing. But the New Year is coming soon. After it, there may not be much demand for a couple of months after it,” Tatiana admits.

Do you have local internet? Can you see where the longest line is in front of the Russian border? Yana asks. We left the Laplandia store and are ready to go to Russia.

There are 100 cars in Brusnichny. In Svetogorsk - 80, - I announce the data of the service "On the Border".

We drive through Brusnik: although the queue is longer, but closer, - Yana commands. I climb back into the trunk, to the "Do not open in EU" bags. The bottom one still pricks me in the side with a carton of milk. So we fly over the Finnish border and run into the tail of the line at the Russian one. The cars are just getting bigger. Yana peers into the queue: "Well, even look for yourself, compare - people began to travel less? What kind of crisis ?!"

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You can bring traditional souvenirs with you. They differ in Finland in design and great variety. Also in the markets and shops a lot of high-quality clothes, bags, hats are sold. Shoes are also presented in a wide variety, there are large sizes that are sometimes difficult to find in other countries.

When choosing a gift, a souvenir or just a purchase that you can bring home, you need to start from interests. Many people buy high-quality alcohol, someone buys leather clothes, vitamins, dried fruits.

Souvenirs

What to bring from Finland as souvenirs? There are many handicrafts made from real deerskin here. You can also buy a knife with a wooden handle.

The average price of a branded knife is 100 euros. Producers – Marttiini, Roselli, Kainuun .

Cooks' wooden mug is also a great souvenir. You can drink from it. It is inexpensive, usually made by hand, decorated with various beautiful accessories.

Present

What to bring as a gift from Finland? Unusual decor is a great option. There are themed shops with decorative elements in the style of modernism and functionalism. For example, a candlestick, plates, dishes in general. Pots with an unusual shape, cutlery are offered.

You can buy a blanket as a gift. Here, these products are incredibly warm and pleasant to the touch. The decor is completely different.

Moomin trolls are extremely popular characters from Tove Jansson, the author of a series of books. They are depicted on toys, cups, and other objects. Moomin trolls are close to the national culture.

Again, you can buy a designer item as a gift. For example, it will be an accessory for a mobile phone, a unique high-quality case designed in an unusual style. The Marimekko brand offers cases for tablets, laptops, bags, mirrors in a compact case and much more.

Products

sausages

You can buy homemade sausage. It is difficult to say that there are bad and good companies - all are reliable and conscientious. The manufacturer Kotivara is especially distinguished - it produces a wide variety of products, and the products are presented in almost every butcher's shop.

Often Russians bring Venalainen sausage (translated as Russian). On the other hand, if you want to take something completely unusual, it is better to stop at any horse meat product. They are of the highest quality here.

Sweets in Finland perishable, but this only emphasizes their high quality. Fazer, Kultasuklaa are well-known brands that produce chocolate.

Licorice is a sweet that is rightfully considered the most respected in Finland. Liquorice looks like dark figures, sometimes colored. They are packed in partially transparent bags. A distinctive feature of licorice is that it is made using herbs, it contains vitamins and trace elements. So the Finns strengthen the immune system and fight cough.

Don't confuse licorice with salmiakki. The latter are a cheap alternative for $1-$3. They are produced artificially by their substitutes and are not useful, which means that such sweets can be bought at any store.

The most famous and delicious chocolate is FAZER.

vitamins

Vitamins in Finland are especially popular. Many tourists buy them here. For example, the Ladyvita brand is in great demand among the domestic contingent. And there are not only women's complexes, starting from the name, but also children's. Vitamins for pregnant women are sold separately, for women over the age of 50.

For children, it is also worth buying vitamins Sana-Sol (syrup form) or Multitabs D-tipat (oil base).

Household chemicals and cosmetics

It is believed that in Finland there are better household chemicals and cosmetics. Moreover, the packaging may be the same, but the quality is different. For example, Fairy, Tide and other brands we know sell their products in Finland.

clothing

Bring clothes from Finland is very profitable. In this country, sales are often found, but only in stores. On the market, you can stumble upon a fake, and not the cheapest.

If your goal is to save as much as possible, look for sales with 70% off.

TAX FREE stickers are placed on store windows, but not everywhere. This means that the store has a program for issuing a value-added tax refund document for a tourist who will cross the Finnish border on the way back. This document is submitted to the customs service. As a result, the tourist gets the opportunity to return part of the money for the purchase, which makes it even cheaper.

By the way, the Tax Free system applies not only to clothing stores, but also to other outlets selling various goods.

Especially popular in Finland is the Marimekko brand. Products are sold in large shopping centers such as Stockmann, Kamppi.

If you want to buy something unusual, which is definitely not available in your homeland, check out the design district of Helsinki. True, there are such different ones in different cities of Finland.

Coffee

Many companies that operate in the country sell products all over the world. For example, the brands Pauling, Kulta Katriina. There is practically no soluble, the Finns brew coffee in a Turk or a coffee maker.

Alcohol

Alcohol is not very different from ours, domestic. You can buy good Finlandia vodka, Minttu or Lapponia liqueur, Kotikalja beer.

There is another type of vodka that is quite difficult to find, and the price is not the lowest. Koskenkerva is its name.

Important! If you plan to buy alcohol, it must be done before 21:00 local time.

Possible restrictions on export from Finland and restrictions on import to Russia

There is a restriction on the import of meat, fish and dairy products. They must be vacuum packed. True, many tourists manage to bring home some fish in a bag, something dairy, if it is not striking and one can say that it is taken for themselves at the moment. In general, here you are lucky, but there is a limitation.

There is a restriction on the export of products of animal origin, and they must be packaged accordingly. These are canned food, butter, sausage, fish. The fish must be processed (cooked). The restriction covers milk and everything that is produced with its use, any seafood.

For every person who leaves Finland, there must be no more than five kilograms of animal products. Animal feed can also be transported at the rate of not more than 5 kilograms per passenger. Such products are taken in hand luggage.

In Russia, there is a restriction on the import of alcoholic beverages. If citizens are over 17 years old, they can take with them no more than three liters of alcoholic beverages.

Cigarettes are also restricted for import. There should be a maximum of 200 of them for each person over 17 years old (50 cigars, respectively). For tobacco, the restriction is as follows - 250 grams per person, respectively, over 18 years old. If a citizen is under this age, he is not allowed to transfer anything at all from alcoholic or tobacco products.

Attention! Remember that you can import up to 50 kilograms of goods into the Russian Federation duty-free. Further, there is a duty of 4 euros for each kilogram.

The total value of all exported goods must not exceed 1,500 euros. Therefore, it is better to keep receipts to prevent misunderstandings.

Berries, fruits and vegetables can be taken out of Finland if their weight does not exceed 3 kg.

What cannot be exported

Export of raw meat and fish is prohibited. Plants in pots are also not exported. In some cases, there must be an export permit (for example, you bought a potted flower in a company store, where documents will be provided for it).