“Some are willing to overpay 5,000 rubles to have air conditioning installed as quickly as possible.”
People are mostly suffering from the extreme heat that has covered Moscow and the central part of Russia, but some sellers and entrepreneurs are enjoying the increased profits these days. They take well everything that cools in the heat and makes life easier under the sun: ice cream, mineral water and kvass, fans and air conditioners (it’s too late to purchase the latter, but the number of orders for their service is definitely increasing), sunscreens and panama hats. MK spoke with business representatives whose products and services are in great demand in the heat, and the economist cited growth figures.
What does our imagination draw from food in stuffy weather? That's right, the ultimate dream of both children and adults these days — ice cream. I buy a frozen treat, and at the same time ask the seller how the trade is going. “These days I sell three times as much!” — she shares willingly. — The best way to disassemble ice creams is in waffle cups and popsicles — Look, by noon I had already run out of them, now I’m waiting for a car with a new batch. Look, what a big list of what I need for tomorrow, — it's all already taken apart! (Shows empty trays in the freezer.) It flies apart in an instant!” (Note that this tent is not yet in the busiest location.)
— Against the backdrop of the prevailing hot weather, Russians' demand for certain categories of goods has increased significantly, sales of which have doubled or more, — commented Associate Professor of the Basic Department of Trade Policy of the Russian Economic University. G.V. Plekhanova Svetlana Ilyashenko. — The traditional leaders here are soft drinks and ice cream. In the last week of this June, ice cream sales, for example, were up almost 40% compared to the previous week.
The main salvation in the heat — air conditioners or, at worst, fans. It’s too late to install air conditioners, but there are many who “came to their senses” about it. only now, when it has become completely unbearable. Telegram channels report that due to long queues, they will be able to deliver the desired equipment to you at the most “relevant” one. time for this — in early September. The installation price is indicated, and now it is higher than before the start of the season, namely 15,000–20–000 rubles. «MK» I talked about this topic with air conditioning installation specialist Nikita Dmitriev.
— Now we have actually doubled the number of orders, — he confirmed. — For installation we have — 3-4 days of waiting (and not as they write, — not a month and a half). We did not raise our prices for installing an air conditioner — basic installation remains from 15,000 (this is on average with a route of no more than 5 meters) to 18,000 rubles. But I know that others have raised their prices — Demand creates supply. Although some people are willing to overpay 5,000 rubles in order for someone to come to them first, this also happens. Busiest months — from April to August. Before the start of the season, maintenance, now repairs… In winter, installation is a little cheaper — 12 000–13 000 rub.
— There can only be a shortage of air conditioners of certain brands, but otherwise there are no problems. Leaders in this area in terms of quality — Japanese made — because of sanctions, they have practically disappeared from the market, and there may be problems with them, and different Chinese ones — complete. In terms of prices: a cheap Chinese one (with unimportant characteristics, but accessible to the masses) costs from 15,000 rubles, and the best “sanctioned” one costs 15,000 rubles. Mitsubishi unit will cost from 150 000 rubles.
— The average waiting time for installation of air conditioners has increased from several days to two to three weeks, and the cost of work has increased by an average of 15%, — Svetlana Ilyashenko provides data. — Some service companies offer the client to pay an additional 70-100% for the urgency of completing the order.
Residents of the capital are actively buying fans these days, fortunately they don’t run out on marketplaces, for any budget. There are “neck portable” ones. costing 1800-2000 rubles. Mini (on desktop) — 618 rub. Floor-mounted bladeless ones with remote controls — more expensive: 6000–8000 rub. and higher. All samples have their own delivery time to the point — from «tomorrow» until «the day after tomorrow» or «July 6th». Thanks to the marketplaces for our happy summer!
Traditionally, sales of accessories for the beach and swimming have also skyrocketed: for example, the demand for swimsuits has grown by 30%. Sales of sunscreens and products — creams with SPF, sunglasses, hats — usually begin to grow in April, and by the beginning of July the demand for them almost doubled.
Further, pools and equipment for them are selling like hot cakes (or rather, like popsicles in the heat), and the purchase of an inflatable pool is often considered an impulse purchase — in contrast to buying a frame one, which is more expensive and requires more careful preparation during installation. According to the marketplace analytics service, while sales of inflatable pools increased by a third, the demand for frame ones increased by one and a half times.
The expert added that the trend for road travel is steadily affecting this summer an almost doubling of sales of car refrigerators.
…From an apartment cooled by air conditioning (who is lucky enough to have it installed in advance), getting to the right place in a hot city is, of course, more pleasant in a cool taxi, and for those who can hardly tolerate such a climate, this is simply vital. But here again there is an “ambush”. Taxi prices double not only in rain and snow, but also in hot weather. On the morning of July 3, the price for a 25-minute trip around Moscow was 1,400 rubles. (on normal cool days — 700 rubles).
Meanwhile, as recently as June 19, it was reported that State Duma Deputy Speaker Boris Chernyshov sent a letter to the Federal Antimonopoly Service of the Russian Federation with a request to conduct an inspection due to a jump in taxi prices during the recent rainstorms in Moscow. On June 17-18, prices for this type of transport doubled or even quadrupled. In general, the problem of determining the cost of taxi trips has been discussed for several years, but price jumps are “still there.” As Chernyshov noted, “taxi aggregators explain the rise in prices during bad weather by increased demand,” but, according to the taxi drivers themselves, their profits on such days do not increase in proportion to the cost of trips. From this, the Deputy Speaker of the State Duma concluded that “it is the order services, and not the performers, who receive the main benefit from the increase in tariffs in such periods.”
— Firstly, in the heat, drivers work less, — explained auto expert Pyotr Shkumatov. — This is due to increased fatigue of drivers in the sun — That’s why it would be nice to allow at least some tinting. That is, even if the air conditioner is working in the cabin, a person still gets tired quite quickly in the sun. But during this time he needs to earn the same amount of money, so prices rise a little. Because the total working time of drivers on the line is falling.
Who else benefits from hot days are auto couriers (delivering orders in cars), and couriers on motorized vehicles and “on their own two feet.” People don’t want to leave home again. Therefore, the income of the “messengers” is in hot weather they almost double, as, indeed, in any other bad weather. And the number of orders is growing, from which money comes, and tips…
On July 3, the thermometer showed +31.5° in Moscow at the VDNKh weather station at noon, and +32.9° in Balchug. “During the observations at the VDNKh weather station, since 1949, July 3 has never been so hot,” — Forecaster Mikhail Leus reported.
A slight relief from the heat in the form of downpour promised by weather forecasters in some areas of the capital — short, but strong and in tandem with squally winds, occurred in the second half of Wednesday. But on July 5, Friday, as weather forecasters say, something unpleasant will again await us in terms of weather surprises. “Showers are expected on Friday, which means flooding in low places and in tunnels is not excluded, — the head of the Meteo forecasting center, in turn, warned Alexander Shuvalov. — During thunderstorms, sudden and therefore very unpleasant strong squalls are possible. Considering that in the first half of the day the air will still have time to warm up to 31-33 degrees, a repetition of the St. Petersburg storm of two days ago is very likely.”
At the same time, according to him, Friday’s weather cataclysm, with all its negative aspects will also bring life-giving coolness. Already on Saturday, July 6, the elements will calm down and the street will become noticeably cooler. No rain is expected in Moscow on Sunday, and the temperature will still be quite tolerant to the citizens — 24–26 degrees. “However, the respite from the heat will be very short: from Monday, July 8, the thermometer will again reach the 30-degree mark,” — predicted Shuvalov.