Soyuzplodoimport

Soyuzplodoimport
Native name
Союзплодоимпорт
Company typeFederal enterprise
Founded2002
FounderThe Government of the Russian Federation
Websitehttp://www.spimport.ru/

Soyuzplodoimport (Russian: Союзплодоимпорт, lit. 'Union-fruit-import') is a company based in Moscow. It owns the trademarks of different types of vodka, including the Stolichnaya and Moskovskaya brands.[1] The company also markets canned herrings under its Stolichnaya brand as part of a partnership with Russian Sea Group.[2]

Soyuzplodoimport was established in 1966 to import food items, including cocoa beans, coffee, spices and vegetables, and to export vodka.[3] The company was not privatized, and remained under state ownership in the post-Soviet era.[3]

In 1997, its then-president Yuri Shefler formed a new private company, Soyuzplodimport (almost the same name as the government-owned company, minus an 'o').[4] The new private entity then purchased some of Russia's main vodka brands from the government-owned Soyuzplodoimport for $300,000.[4] An investigation by the Audit Commission valued the trademarks at $400 million, and in October 2001 a Russian court ruled Soyuzplodoimport was illegally privatized, and restored 17 vodka brands under its ownership.[4]

In 2015, Soyuzplodoimport managed to win court cases against Shefler and regain control of the brand in the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg, but the decision was not final.[5]

  1. ^ "FKP Soyuzplodoimport: Private Company Information". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  2. ^ "Vodka maker teams up with Russian Sea to produce canned herring". Undercurrent News. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  3. ^ a b "The History of reorganization of All Union Association Soyuzplodoimport". Газета.Ru. 17 June 2002. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Walsh, Nick Paton (4 August 2002). "Putin targets Stoli boss in the battle for vodka billions". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 8 November 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  5. ^ Ambrose, Jillian (12 November 2017). "Battle over Stolichnaya vodka brand returns to European court". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 December 2017.