For a year, flowers in Russia have doubled in price, the Izvestia newspaper reports, citing suppliers. On the eve of March 8, the cost may rise by another 25-30 percent. The reasons for the rise in prices were the coronavirus pandemic, increased transportation costs and a cold winter.
According to Starlight, prices have increased from 30 to 100 percent depending on the supplier country. If last year one rose cost 80 rubles, now you will have to pay 150 rubles for it. Tulips are at risk of becoming a scarce commodity, especially for flowers brought from Holland.
“Russian flowers are also becoming more expensive. In our country, the winter turned out to be harsh, more money is spent on heating greenhouses, all this is included in the cost of a flower,” a company representative explained.
Market participants also spoke about the problems at the Belarusian customs, where trucks with goods have been stuck since mid-February. However, according to the Federal Customs Service (FCS), there are no delays in deliveries, they deny information about the shortage of flowers, claiming that the consignments, on the contrary, arrive in record volumes.
Sellers, in turn, note that it has now become unprofitable to sell flowers. Starlight believes that customers simply do not have money for bouquets, and their staff has been cut by 80 percent. The same situation has developed in the “Flower Paradise” company: in a year it lost 70 percent of its employees.