They were shuttle traders, but became buyers: a new profession appeared in Russia due to the departure of brands

Yekaterina Maksimova

Today, at least 12-15 thousand ads can be found on the request of "bayer services" only on Avito.

A few months ago, there were about two or three hundred intermediaries buying goods abroad for individual orders. 

Hello, are you a bayer?

"Who is Bayer? This is usually the name of intermediaries who select goods in the fashion industry. In fact, personally, I just buy clothes from brands that have left the country in Europe. I have dual citizenship. I fly a lot. In the Soviet years, we would have been called shuttle traders, speculators. Now is the time again when there is a shortage. There are enough orders, it's a sin to complain. There are already regular customers", - one of the buyers, Alexey, told Novye Izvestia.

The head of the Union of Russian Buyers Yelena Bugranova recalled that traditionally buyers-legal entities work with official stores and pay taxes.  

"These are the people who work in our union. And those who are engaged in private activities are just dealers, speculators. If we are talking about such buyers, then indeed, their number has increased very dramatically now. This is understandable: when there is a shortage of goods and there is a need for the market, there are always those who want to make money on it", - says Bugranova.

Even to Milan - for sale 

Most buyers are located in Moscow and St. Petersburg, but fashion intermediaries can now be found in almost every region of the Russian Federation.

At the request of "bayer services", ads with an offer to purchase goods around the world "fall out":  in Europe, the USA, China and even in neighboring republics. 

Here, for example, is how a buyer specializing in China described his services: "We provide a full cycle of services: search for the goods you need in China, purchase, payment, integrity check, quality, packaging, delivery. Delivery rates from China are 10-15 days by air (5-12.5 dollars per kg), 15-20 days by car (2-6 dollars per kg), 35-50 days by rail (2-5 dollars per kg)." The percentage markup for the product itself depends on the weight of the parcel. 

But the announcement from Bayer, who established a mini-exports to Russia from Germany. "I will help with the registration and shipment of goods to Russia; I will buy for you original branded clothing, equipment, accessories, shoes, spare parts;  I can help pay for services," writes Denis Bayer.

The average cost of bayer services is 10% of the order amount (but there are also those who offer a fixed "tariff"). Plus the shipping cost. 

For example, the delivery from Europe to Russia of a full suitcase of branded clothing will be approximately 300-350 euros. Minimum volumes (a package with things up to 2 kilograms)  they will be brought for 200-250 euros. For such money, you will also have to wait: on average, the delivery time varies from 2-3 weeks or more. 

Without any guarantees

"100% prepayment, including transportation costs.

The product is non-refundable. If it didn't fit, you can't return it.  The client's task is not to make a mistake with the size and other parameters when placing an order. My business is only to buy out exactly those positions that I was sent links to. And deliver it to Russia. Everything else is solely the risks of the customer", - explained the principle of operation of Bayer Mila from Moscow to Novye Izvestia.  

Personally, Mila added, her largest order consisted of 17 items. "A young married couple has updated the wardrobe of branded clothing: several pairs of shoes, Levis jeans, two down jackets, dresses, sweatshirts, T-shirts of various brands. And they really missed LUSH cosmetics and ordered a bunch of jars of creams. In total, the rise in price - delivery and my percentage - cost the guys about 30 thousand rubles", - Mila shared. 

Another "shuttle buyer" said that most often buyers do not go abroad themselves, but simply take on all the hassle of purchasing goods at world-famous sites. The most popular marketplaces are eBay, StockX, Farfetch, Yoox, Mytheresa, etc. 

Yelena Bugranova notes that such services are provided exclusively on trust. "Private traders offering their services on various platforms are responsible for themselves. There have been cases when people, maybe, did not want to cheat on purpose, but the circumstances were such (illegal deliveries, difficulties with the transfer of funds) that both money and goods were lost", - the head noted.  Union of Russian buyers. 

As for the activities of the professional community, according to Bugranova, the preferences of clients have changed. "On the one hand, there are a lot of orders, but there is a clearer segmentation. Those who preferred luxury and premium, they continue to buy. And those who bought the middle segment moved to the mass market", - Yelena Bugranova estimated. 

A private shop from buyers, of course, is not comparable with the turnover of parallel imports. Since May 2022, goods worth more than $20 billion have been imported to Russia under the parallel import mechanism. Such data at the end of last year was given by the head of the Federal Customs Service of the Russian Federation Vladimir Bulavin. Most of all cars, machine tools, and equipment were imported. But there are also light industry goods on the list.