The owner of the largest Russian footwear manufacturer from Kazan factory "Spartak" became its general director Raikhat Garipov. As a result of the additional issue, he acquired almost 96% of the shares for 1 billion rubles. Experts point out that the investment is promising, believing that the asset can be recouped in five years.
The Spartak factory is one of the largest footwear enterprises in Russia. In 2011, the company's revenue grew by almost 20% and exceeded RUB 1,1 billion. At the end of last year, the authorized capital of the OJSC amounted to 42,86 million rubles. According to the SPARK database, 97,3% of the OJSC as of December 31, 2011 belonged to the 100% subsidiary of the factory - LLC Spartak-Finance, 0,9% - to Mr. Garipov.
Raikhat Garipov refused to comment on his acquisition - the press service of the enterprise responded for the inquiry that "the management considered it inappropriate to publish materials with such information." A source close to the deal noted that it was approved by the majority of Spartak shareholders in June last year. Then 39,85% of the company's shares were owned by Tatfondbank, other large stakes belonged to companies close to the bank. In particular, 19,92% of the shares were controlled by Kazan LLC MC IRGA, 16,32% - OJSC National Holding Company RT, 15,41% - Kazan branch of LLC MC Zolotoy Kolos. At that time, "Spartak" had almost a thousand shareholders, including 956 individuals, holding a total of 2,72% of the votes.
Raikhat Garipov, according to a biography published on the Internet, in 1980-1988 worked as a shoemaker in a fashion shoe salon in Kazan, and in 1988 he founded the Selena cooperative for sewing shoes. In 1991, he became vice president of the National Investment Fund of the Republic of Tatarstan, which, in particular, was engaged in the purchase of republican assets for privatization checks. Since 1994, he was appointed vice president of the investment company TaTinK, and in 1997 - deputy chairman of the board of Tatfondbank.
Raikhat Garipov has been the head of Spartak since 2003. As Kommersant wrote on January 11, 2011, his predecessor Ramis Gizetdinov was arrested in 2006 in the case of an organized criminal group of raiders. He was sentenced to three years and ten months in a colony under Art. 160 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (misappropriation or embezzlement). The court found that Mr. Gizetdinov, as part of the organized criminal group, had sold the property of the factory for 8 million rubles. for counterfeit bills of Sberbank of the Russian Federation.
Currently "Spartak" produces footwear of three brands "Spartak", "Bon ton", "Poliar" and, according to its own calculations, occupies 1% of the footwear market in Russia, the volume of which, according to various estimates (in particular, the branch association Roslegprom ", National Shoe Association), is 400-450 million pairs, or about $ 23 billion a year. Despite such a small share, Spartak is considered one of the largest Russian footwear manufacturers. As Anna Mishutina, an analyst with Finam Investment Company, explained, "the share of domestic production accounts for only about 15% of the market in terms of commodity mass and less than 10% in terms of money."
In 2010, Spartak increased its production volume in relation to 2009 by 21,5% - up to 510 thousand pairs. The company's sales in 2010 amounted to more than 236 thousand pairs, with an increase of 86,7% compared to last year. According to official documents, by the end of 2012 the factory intends to increase its market share in the Russian Federation to 1,5% and "gain a foothold in the CIS markets and enter the world market."
Natalya Pauli, Deputy Director for Public Relations of Obuv Rossii Group of Companies, considers the asset acquired by Mr. Garipov attractive considering the growth prospects that the Russian footwear market has been demonstrating since last year. At the same time, she believes that the factory can count on success subject to the development of the sales network. Ms. Pauli considers 82 of its own stores, which Spartak reports on its official website, to be insufficient “on a Russian scale”.
The Spartak factory itself, in official documents, announces its intention to expand its retail network to 200 stores this year (the operator is a 100% subsidiary of the Spartak Trading House LLC, while the Polyar LLC subsidiary is also a wholesaler). In 2012, the factory plans to make a profit of 107,6 million rubles.
Anna Mishutina also believes that "the asset looks quite attractive": "The company is developing quite dynamically and in general retains the potential for further business expansion and strengthening of market positions", while "the net profitability was formed at a level that is quite high for the industry, about 25%." “While maintaining strong key financial indicators, investments in the acquisition of the enterprise as a whole can pay off in a fairly short period of time, say, about 4-5 years,” Mishutina believes. “This market undoubtedly has significant growth prospects. Now the average per capita consumption of footwear is on average 2-3 times lagging behind similar indicators in developed countries and, according to various estimates, varies in the range of 1,5-2,5 pairs per year. " The newspaper "Kommersant" writes about this.
| Rating |
Shoes Style and its Discoveries. An Interview with Anton Bazylev, Prize Winner of the International Shoe Design Competition
The international shoe design competition Shoes Style, held in Moscow this year, showcased many interesting footwear and accessory collections. Shoes Report recently published a story about the winners—third-year students from Kosygin Russian State University, Margarita Skvaznikova and Egor Lysov, who presented their "Retrospective" shoe collection at Shoes Style.
ICEBUG at Euro Shoes: Swedish Innovation in Grip Technology
ICEBUG is a Swedish company steeped in innovation and creativity. Our rapid growth is a result of our expertise in grip and technology. Since its inception, ICEBUG has been creating footwear with superior grip and is always striving to improve grip even further.
KV+ will present versatile sneakers for both sports and urban wear at Euro Shoes.
The Swiss brand KV+ is not so well known to the general Russian audience, but it is well known in the world of skiing, because it was there that KV+ took its first steps and actively developed. The Swiss brand has earned the trust of the professional sports audience over the past 35 years. At the same time, the Russian sports market of ski equipment has always been a priority for the Swiss.
Rieker and Remonte are regular exhibitors at Euro Shoes: meet your favorite brands at the exhibition from August 25 to 28 at the Central Trade Fair Center.
Riker and Remonte will present their Spring/Summer 2027 collections at the Euro Shoes exhibition (August 25–28, WTC Congress Centre).
New brands at Euro Shoes in August!
At the end of the month, from August 25th to 28th, the international footwear and accessories exhibition Euro Shoes Premiere Collection will take place in Moscow at the WTC Congress Center on Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment. We'd like to introduce you to the new exhibitors at Euro Shoes, who will be presenting their collections of footwear, accessories, shoe care products, and leather goods.
From July 27 to 29, the Euro Shoes@CAF_Eliteline 2026 exhibition will be held in Almaty, Kazakhstan.
Elite Line is an international specialized exhibition of footwear, fur, leather, and accessories. The exhibition will feature collections from international and domestic manufacturers from Russia, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, and other countries.
How to learn to effectively manage store customer traffic?
Customer traffic in shopping malls and street retail is declining; people are shopping less offline for a number of objective reasons, one of which is the convenience of online shopping with all its advantages. And yet, offline shopping continues to thrive. How can we control store traffic, learn to correctly calculate and influence the number of people visiting stores to ensure profitability?
"When Customers Are Few: How Fashion Store Owners Can Squeeze the Most Out of Every Customer"
In recent years, offline retail in clothing, footwear, and accessories has been operating under conditions of a steady decline in incoming traffic. By the end of 2025, offline store traffic in Russia had declined by 8-15%, with the offline segment's purchase rate declining more sharply than the overall market, according to Retail.ru. According to statistics from individual shopping centers, the decline by the end of last year was between 15 and 25%. How can salespeople effectively engage with customers in such challenging conditions? We'll explore service strategies in low traffic conditions with SR expert Elena Vinogradova, who specializes in purchasing and sales in the fashion business. The expert shares proven methods with practical examples of speech modules. Elena is confident that, in a context of declining traffic, high-quality service is becoming the main competitive advantage for the shoe industry.
How the Masters Forge. Interviews with the Winners of the International Shoe Design Competition, Shoes Style
In May 2026, the finalists of the international footwear design competition, Shoes Style, were awarded again in Moscow. The annual competition is held by A.N. Kosygin Russian State University, a university that trains shoe designers and technologists, and attracts students from design universities in Russia and the CIS.
How to sell more without losing customer trust?
Today, discounts and sales are no longer considered an effective tool for achieving sales targets. Furthermore, online and offline stores offer consumers virtually the same price for shoes, and consumers often choose not the cheapest option, but the easiest and fastest one. This is why service and soft sales are becoming a key competitive advantage for shoe stores, says Maria Gerasimenko, an expert at SR in fashion business management and development.
Euro Shoes: the industry's leading footwear exhibition will be held August 25–28 at the WTC Congress Center.
At the end of August, Moscow will once again become a magnet for the footwear industry: the WTC Congress Center on Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment will host the international exhibition Euro Shoes Premiere Collection—a specialized B2B event for footwear industry and fashion retail professionals, the key industry event of the new purchasing season and the development of fashion retail assortments. Over 100 companies and brands will participate in the exhibition, presenting their spring/summer 2027 collections of shoes, bags, and accessories to professional visitors. A working meeting of the National Footwear Union of Russia (NOBS) will be held as part of Euro Shoes, featuring footwear companies, professional associations, marketplaces, and independent experts.
The share of marketplaces will grow
The footwear category on Ozon Fashion shows steady growth
What factors influence pricing, and how to work with retail prices for shoes
Footwear retail is one of those segments that is highly dependent on seasonality. Pricing in the footwear business, in turn, depends on a multitude of factors, from production costs to the vagaries of weather and regional factors.
New Tamaris Spring-Summer 26 Collection: Comfort and Elegance in Every Model
German footwear and accessories brand Tamaris will present its new Spring-Summer '26 collection at the Euro Shoes exhibition in Moscow, from August 27 to 30.
Creating an emotional connection through a showcase
Emotional response from customers is the key to successful retail sales. Shop windows are capable of not only attracting attention, but also evoking emotions: from joy and nostalgia to a sense of belonging and the desire to possess. Using psychological triggers in shop window design helps turn a passerby into a buyer. SR expert in visual merchandising and retail design Viktor Malygin talks about approaches to the concept of shop window design and current themes and plots for presenting goods in shop windows.
MARCO TOZZI presented his Fall-Winter 2025/26 collection in Moscow.
A harmony of comfort and elegance, fashion trends and classic essentials—German shoe and bag brand MARCO TOZZI presents its new Fall-Winter 2025/26 collection.
Euro Shoes starts on August 27th!
The leading international exhibition of footwear and accessories in Moscow, Euro Shoes premiere collection, starts next week!
Euro Shoes: The Fall Premiere That Set Trends and Raised Acute Questions for the Industry
From August 27 to 30, Moscow once again became the shoe capital: the international exhibition Euro Shoes premiere collection was held in the congress center of the Central Trade Fair on Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment. For four days, the exhibition brought together leading global brands, buyers and industry experts, becoming a place where fashion trends are created and business alliances are formed.
Three fashionable colors for accessories and shoes for the fall-winter 2025/26 season
Each season, trend bureau Future Snoops (formerly Fashion Snoops) identifies key colors for different product groups. For shoes, bags, and accessories, the forecast takes into account the specifics of the categories and is based on general cross-market color forecasts for the season. The three colors described in the article below will influence the accessories market in the fall/winter 25/26 season, helping you promote trendy new items and update classic styles. These shades have beautiful and delicious names: "Ice Star," "Honey Glaze," and "Cherry Jam."
Euro Shoes — March 4-7, 2026 at the WTC Congress Center
From March 4th to 7th, leading brands from Europe, Asia, and the CIS will gather at the WTC Congress Center in Moscow to present their Fall/Winter 2026 collections, capture current trends, and set the direction for the fashion industry.
Customer profiling in a shoe store. What is this technique and how can it be used in sales?
Profiling is a scientific method of "reading people," allowing one to create a psychological profile of a person and predict their actions or behavior in certain situations, or even catch them in a lie. Profiling is used in sales because the salesperson needs to understand a person's emotional state and their underlying motivations for purchasing. An expert and practitioner in sales growth in fashion, SR, discusses this method and its practical application in footwear retail.
Shoe educational program: what shoe soles are made of
“What is the difference between TEP and EVA? What does tunit promise me? Is PVC glue? What is the sole of these shoes made of? ”- the modern buyer wants to know everything. In order not to smash his face in front of him and be able to explain whether such a sole suits him in soles, carefully read this article. In it, process engineer Igor Okorokov tells what materials the soles of shoes are made of and what makes each of them so good.
How to set prices that will earn
Some businessmen still confuse the concept of margin with the concept of trade margins and set prices for their goods, guided solely by the example of competitors. No wonder they go broke! Analyst at the Academy of Retail Technologies Maxim Gorshkov gives several tips and formulas with which you can set not only ruinous, but also profitable prices.
Sales of shoes and accessories: effective techniques for business rhetoric
Which speech modules are effective in communicating with potential and current customers of shoe stores, and which are not, Anna Bocharova, a business consultant, knows.
We form the salary of sellers: expert advice
“How do you charge your consultants for personal or general sales?” Is one of the most popular questions causing a lot of controversy and gossip on the online forums of retail business owners. Indeed, how to properly form the earnings of sellers? But what about bonuses, where to get a sales plan from, do employees allow them to buy goods at discounted stores? In search of truth, the Shoes Report turned to a dozen shoe retailers, but no company wanted to disclose its motivation system - the process of its development was too complicated and individual. Then we asked four business consultants, and finally became convinced that the topic of seller motivation is very complex, because even our experts could not come to a common opinion.
The whole truth about Bayer. Who is he and how to become one?
Bayer is no longer a new, but still a popular and sought-after profession. It’s fashionable to be a buyer. Buyers are at the origins of the emergence and development of trends. If the designer offers his vision of fashion in the season, then the buyer selects the most interesting commercial ideas. It is on buyers that the policy of sales of stores and what, in the end, the buyer will wear depends on. This profession is surrounded by a magical fleur, often associated with a lack of understanding of what exactly is the work of a buyer.
Technology Selling Issues
There is nothing worse than meeting the buyer with the words “Hello, can I help you with something?”, Because the seller works in the store just to help. Criticizing this well-established pattern of communication with the buyer, Andrei Chirkarev, business coach for effective sales and the founder of the New Economy project, shares the technology of truly selling issues with readers of Shoes Report.
Fur, and not only: types of lining
In the production of winter footwear, various materials are used that are designed to retain heat and meet the requirements of consumers: natural sheepleather, artificial fur, artificial fur from natural wool and others. All types of lining fur have their own advantages and disadvantages. Let's consider the properties of each of them.
Retail Arithmetic
Before you begin to solve specific problems, you need to find out how accurately all the leaders of your company understand the basic terminology of retail.
How to fire a worker without tears, scandal and trial
Sooner or later, any manager is faced with the need to part with an employee. Correctly and on time the dismissal procedure will save the company money, and the boss himself - nerves and time. But why sometimes, knowing that a break in relations is inevitable, we postpone the decision for months?