Магазины "Березка": парадоксы потребления в позднем СССР

Foreign currency transactions were considered a criminal offense in the USSR, the cult of Western goods among Soviet citizens was a constant object of criticism in the newspapers, and the existence of privileged supplies was officially denied. Nevertheless, Beryozka state stores, in which certain groups of Soviet citizens could buy scarce imported goods for currency and its substitutes (certificates and checks), functioned successfully throughout the Soviet Union.
Moreover, they became an important part of the late Soviet everyday life. American jeans, Japanese tape recorders and Italian boots were bought at Beryozki not only by diplomats or artists who went on tour, but also by Soviet workers who provided "technical assistance" in third world countries, dissidents who received foreign currency transfers from abroad, as well as ordinary Soviet citizens who dared to buy currency substitutes on the black market for rubles. Beryozka stores were perceived in Soviet society both as a standard of consumption and as an example of social injustice. In Anna Ivanova's book, retail currency trading in the late USSR becomes the object of historical research for the first time. The author examines the reasons for the appearance of Beryozka stores, describes the categories of Soviet citizens who had access to "closed" foreign exchange shops, and the image of foreign exchange trading in official discourse and among consumers. The book is based on documents from the central and republican archives, materials from the Soviet press, memoirs and personal interviews with both employees and users of the currency trading system.
2nd Edition