Authored by Liz Heflin via Remix News,

Richard Connolly, a junior research fellow at the Royal Institute of Shared Services in London and an expert on the Russian economy, told CBS News that the number of small and medium-sized enterprises registered in Russia has reached an unprecedented level, writes Do Rzeczy.

In the wake of many Western companies leaving the country or suspending their operations due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, they were quickly replaced by Russian versions.

So, instead of Starbucks, they have Stars Coffee, instead of Zara, they have Maag, and instead of Coca-Cola, Dobry Cola.

Back in April, Doby reported that its 2023 earnings were quadruple the profits made in 2022.

Poland is cutting coal production, but now it mysteriously is importing the same amount of coal from the Russian ally Kazakhstan as it previously did from Russia. https://t.co/DqeaKUJoAQ

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Connolly says that sanctions have proven ineffective, essentially resulting in sanctions evasion becoming a sector in and of itself.

This means that banned Western goods are still entering the country, with Russians able to purchase most of the products they were able to buy before the war.

This includes cars such as Mercedes and Chrysler, which end up in Russia via third countries such as Georgia, Kazakhstan and China.

Their price is higher because of the tortuous import route, but wealthy Russians can afford them. 

“Many Russian small businesses have an incentive to buy goods on foreign markets, bring them back to Russia and sell them at very good margins,” Connolly says.

The expert notes that before the war, Russian investment in the economy was poor, but now Russia is experiencing its “fastest economic growth in the last decade.”

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