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Photo / Evgeni Tcherkasski
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Life after the lockdown.
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August 2020 marked 47649 RUB and 597 USD. While it
Post-pandemic realms look a bit more promising but seems like the numbers grew in the local currency, they’ve
are still hard nonetheless. There’s a Federal Service for definitely declined on the international scale. Baristas,
Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human however, still get paid just as much as back then in 2015
Wellbeing that keeps an eye on the catering industry and — from 180 to 250 rubles ($2.3 to $3.3). The decrease in
puts huge penalties if any single post-pandemic rule is cash flow also leads to delays in paying wages and debts
broken. Baristas nowadays have to make sure every single towards green coffee importers.
guest wears a mask and gloves when they’re inside a cof- According to the same statistics, nearly 20 million
fee shop and communicating with the staff. However, if a people in Russia live beyond the poverty line as of August
guest takes it off at the moment of paying for their order 2020, and that’s almost 13.3% of the country’s population.
and it’s caught on camera and reported — it’s the coffee The ongoing growing gap between the local currency and
shop that gets charged a colossal penalty, not the custom- USD keeps affecting coffee companies’ ability to buy and
er. The staff members have to stay strict yet loyal — and import high-quality coffee. While everybody’s trying to adapt
that’s quite a task to do. to the new normal, and consumption of coffee, in general, is
Many people refuse to wear a mask as well, so coffee not going to drop drastically, specialty coffee doesn’t look
shops are losing customers, and the morning rush is a pret- like a priority to the general public. How will the industry
ty much non-existent thing here anymore. The declining survive if there’s a second lockdown? What kind of coffee
in sales entails in the fewer number of working hours and are we going to drink in 2021? Will the situation with baris-
the smaller number of staff behind the counter. Baristas ta sustainability get better? When will we be able to have rare
get paid less because they work less. According to The and expensive varietals as our regular again? And most im-
Russian Federal State Statistics Service, the average sala- portantly, how do we conduct ourselves as human beings and
ry in Russia in 2015 was 32587 rubles (817.1 US dollars). remain professional at the same time? Only time will show.

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