Kommersant: shopping center owners ask to cancel visas for retailers from friendly countries
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The owners of Russian shopping centers are asking to simplify entry into Russia for retailers from friendly countries. About it writes Kommersant with reference to a letter from the President of the Russian Council of Shopping Centers (RSTC) Dmitry Moskalenko.
Moskalenko sent the document to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. In it, shopping center owners are asked to reduce the cost of obtaining Russian visas or completely cancel them for businessmen from Asia, Africa and Latin America who are open to cooperation with Russia.
The RSTC noted that as of today, brands that occupy a total of about 7 million square meters have ceased to work in shopping centers. m. It is expected that with the departure of the remaining Western companies due to sanctions, another 3 million square meters will be vacated. m. This will lead to a drop in industry revenues by at least 15-20%. Moskalenko notes that some shopping center owners will face a pre-bankrupt state, as they have not yet had time to recover from the crisis due to the coronavirus.
At the same time, retailers from friendly countries are in no hurry to occupy the vacated place. The President of the RSTC specifies that Western companies “have only now begun to break contracts and have not yet vacated the premises.”
In his opinion, the main obstacle to negotiations with representatives of new brands is the cost of obtaining visas. For example, for Turkish citizens, the price of a single entry visa to the Russian Federation is $80, and a multiple entry visa is $240. The RSTC notes that the amount is significant “for the business of these countries.” So the abolition or reduction in the cost of visas for businessmen from Asia, Africa and Latin America will greatly help in establishing international business contacts.
At the same time, Commonwealth Partnership (CMWP) partner Olga Antonova emphasizes that the visa regime does not have a direct impact on the situation. According to her, the investment climate “majorly changed in 2022.”
Evgeniya Khakberdieva, Regional Director of the Department of Retail Real Estate at Knight Frank Russia, also confirms that brands from Asia, Africa and Latin America do not show much interest in the Russian market. In her opinion, in the current situation it is more important to increase benefits for local businesses and importers.
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