Marabou, Sweden's largest chocolate maker, said sales to Russia and the Baltic states jumped from 1 to 5 percent of total exports in the past 12 months.
"We have just started," said Janis Ritums, the company's Eastern Europe export manager.
Marabou sales in Russia and the Baltics totaled around 40 million crowns ($5.4 million) in 1994. Ritums had no forecast for 1995 sales but was confident growth would continue.
Sales have grown along Russia's Baltic coast where there have long been trade links with Sweden. Increased local business contacts have also brought Marabou products to new markets in Moscow and Volgograd where consumers have relatively good purchasing power, Ritums said.
Marabou is hoping to use the available capacity of its Swedish Uplands Vasby plant, where a 1.0-billion-crown renovation project will be completed this year.
Another manufacturer, Cloetta, which has less than 10 percent of the Swedish market compared to Marabou's 50 percent, says it will double its sales to Russia next year, and sales in Estonia will quadruple.
Sales to Russia in 1994 amounted to 14 million crowns and Estonian sales were a tiny 500,000 crowns, according to Cloetta's marketing assistant for Russia and the Baltic states, Katarina Jonsson.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.