PERFUME-LEADER COSMETICS CHAIN ON THE VERGE OF BANKRUPTCY

On June 22, the Omsk Arbitration received several lawsuits against local entrepreneurs engaged in the cosmetics trade. Irina Moiseeva filed a lawsuit against Andrey Korovin with demands for 461,725.26 rubles. (case no. A46-11155/2023), and Olga Denisova demanded from him over 445,000. (case no. A46-11158/2023). Korovin is considered the beneficiary of the "Perfume Leader".

Two more lawsuits filed by the same businesswomen are dated the same day. But in them the defendant is Konstantin Kostrik. Moiseeva demands 158 000 rubles from him (case no. A46-11156/2023), and Denisova – 152 500 rubles. (Case no. A46-11159/2023).

Both women, together with Elena Olkhova, an entrepreneur from St. Petersburg, have already applied to arbitration in May 2023 with claims for bankruptcy of the defendants. Kostrik's bankruptcy application (case no. A46-8452/2023) was accepted by the court on June 9, appointing a hearing for August 8. The application of the same persons on Korovin's insolvency (case no. A46-8451/2023) was accepted for production on June 8. The court session at which the arbitration must consider its validity is scheduled for July 3.

Korovin is considered the main beneficiary of the Perfume-Leader chain of stores selling cosmetics and household chemicals. In Omsk, the network is represented by 50 retail outlets. Konstantin Kostrik, who is engaged in the trade of cosmetics and hygiene products, formally has no relation to the Perfume-Leader company. However, the firm has been headed for several years by Sergey Kostrik, presumably his own brother.

In May 2021, the perfume company was founded by Andrey Korovin's daughter. She owns a 20% stake in the organization, and Konstantin Kostrik owns 40%.

Andrey Korovin is a member of the founders of the company "Marafet", which has existed since 2013 (his share is 20%). The firm is headed by Konstantin Kostrik. The cosmetics store chain, positioning itself as salons "within walking distance", includes over 200 stores in Russia, 108 of which operate in Omsk.

Experts are perplexed what could have caused the filing of several bankruptcy lawsuits of both entrepreneurs at once, given the relatively small amounts of financial claims. According to local media, this could have been caused by external economic motives related to competition.

It is curious that on June 22, 2023, a claim to arbitration was also filed by Konstantin Kostrik (case no. A46-11161/2023). The defendants in it are all the same businesswomen (Denisova, Moiseeva and Olkhova), as well as Andrey Korovin. The co-plaintiff in the case is the Omsk Specialized Department of Mechanization (JSC). The court decision on this application has not yet been made public.