When Ellochka the Cannibal showed Ostap Bender her “Shanghai leopard” in Ilf and Petrov’s Twelve Chairs (the leopard actually being a Russian hare slaughtered in Tambov province) it was probably the most vivid example of how our nation’s fur trade advertises. Today you can buy any “first rate” fur coat at any Ukrainian flea market, at a “reasonable price” — except that in most cases you will deeply regret the bargain. More often than not such goodies are not certified, and experts are certain to be dubious of their quality. Meanwhile the domestic manufacturer wants to supply good merchandise with an eight to twelve year warranty, except that the local economic realities are such that the street market can offer two fur coats instead of one available at the licensed dealer’s price. This fact was noted by Anatoly Livy, president of the Ukrainian Association of Furriers, at a press conference on August 28. He added that this was because in the civilized countries the government provides domestic furriers with loans at token interest rates or even interest-free. In Ukraine, apart from the 35% loan rate, the manufacturer has to pay a 5-6% raw material entry duty and about as much for the export of finished articles. At one time we had enough pelts, he said. In the 1990s there were 51 fur farms breeding slightly less than 3 million minks alone. At present, only six farms are officially in business (of which only three actually operate) and the number of minks is a mere 270,000.
In general, we have a classic problem for all light industry: business is done with foreign exporters on unequal terms, meaning that there is no way to lower the costs, and that enterprises that could pay off quickly remain idle. Ivan Artemovych, CEO of the private Khutrofirma Tysmenytsia fur company, reported a strange fact: there are many Greek manufacturers standing in line for the remnants of production, bits and pieces of pelts which they use to make fur garments and which eventually find their way to the Ukrainian market. Ukrainian manufacturers supply expensive fur coats of Scandinavian mink and castor, as well as of Canadian raccoon, to Japan, the US, and Germany. Polls show that only a small percentage of the Ukrainian population can afford such coats selling at $600-700 apiece. Mr. Artemovych added, however, that “vying for customers is becoming increasingly difficult under the circumstances.” The Ukrainian man in the street still goes to the flea market.
