It's not like Kroger

As I was in Google today... I came across this article (click on the title for the link) that was published in the Cincinnati Enquirer almost two years ago... the reporter from the Cincinnati Enquirer, Cliff Peale, visited Russia to see P&G's operations and this was one of several articles he wrote from his visit.

Anyways, the article will give you some more perspective into life here. Sara and I still shop predominantly in Moscow - where we can buy things in bulk, and can charge our purchases to a credit card (on the days that the credit card reader is working; charging to a credit card eases tracking of your expenditures :) ).

It's amazing to see the changes (improvements) that we've seen in Novomoskovsk in the 9 months that we've lived here. More stores, more selection... the competition is getting fierce though... a large international retailor, SPAR, opened a shop in Novomoskovsk in late December. About 2 months later, someone through a fireball / molotov cocktail into the store - we can't help but to wonder if this was done by one of the local merchants who is losing market share to an international chain. Recall the information I shared about the art market in Moscow? Similar issue... in Russia, sometimes one small business resorts to acts of violence to protect their territory.