We talked about Russian classics yesterday. And then an email came from well-known Jochem: “Ey, I'm sitting there now. And the classics are not all here in Chernobyl or in the woods though. They are just for sale. But there are a few things ". Jochem is in free trade. And he is entrepreneurial. In the early nineties he already traveled to the former Soviet Union to see if there was anything to be gained there.
With the looks and brains of a Russian spy
That went wonderfully. He even found true Love there, just after the fall of the Old Communism. His Svetlana was - and is - a handsome graduate chemist and once beaming about how she fell for Jochem when she discovered he wasn't drunk three times a day, hit women, didn't gamble, and wasn't a chain smoker. Add to this the fact that Jochem was and is a hard worker, had some money and a house plus an open-minded view of life and you understand that their happiness was complete. The last time I spoke to the couple 'life', Jochem beamed his arm around his Lief. "Look, it's really just Step-leg and the Professor." Meanwhile, Svetlana speaks Dutch with the accent of a Russian spy from a James Bond film, works for a pharmaceutical giant and the degree of calculation from the beginning of their relationship has turned into real love.
There are options
However, Jochem has found its place in the former Soviet states. And because he likes everything in principle - and weighs everything out with pleasure - something can be gained from it - he picked up the online article on the AMK site. “We hadn't seen each other for a while and I Googled you in my hotel room. Because I don't get drunk with my business relations for a long time. How are you, old giant? "
So the classic trade in `Russia '
It is there. Because there are classic lovers. Because there is money. Oh yes: where in the former Soviet republics there is money, there is also crime. Mafia. And that's bad people. There is also an agreement between French and Russians. They often speak their mother tongue perfectly, and not otherwise. In addition, they orient themselves in a commercial way to prices they see through Google in the West and most are still convinced that we have much more to spend here than they have. But negotiations can always take place.
The range of native classics is quite large. There are also quite a few vehicles from WWII on offer. And some of the 'western' classics on offer once left for the east without the owner's knowledge. This can cause problems with import because they are 'listed' here.
The good search terms
Searching on the Internet should not be done under 'Russian, or Soviet classic cars motorcycles, but under ´классические советские, российские автомобили и мотоциклы'. Then a world opens up for you. Add Google translate, and you have a very pleasant evening. And that you can pay enormously into the ship under the capitalism found not so long ago? `Oh well, they're all crooks. You just have to take that into account.
We have again made an appointment to catch up