Fashion and the Consumer Revolution in Contemporary Russia

This book explores how clothing consumption has changed in Russia in the past 20 years as capitalism has grown in a postsocialist state, bringing with it a "consumer revolution." It shows how there has been and continues to be a massive change in the fashion retail marketandhow ideal lifestyles portrayed in glossy magazines and other media have contributed to the consumer revolution, as have shifts in the social structure and everyday life. Overall, the book, which includes the findings of extensive original research, including in-depth interviews with consumers, relates changes in fashion and retail to changing outlooks, identities, and ideologies in Russia more generally. The mentioned changes are also linked to the theoretical concept of fashion formed in postsocialist society.

Introduction: "We Started to Dress more Better" 1. Media and the Ideology of Consumption and Fashion: The Case of Krestianka2. From Shuttle Traders to Shopping Malls: Retail Trade Transformations and Consumer Experience3. "We are not Rich Enough to Buy Cheap Things": The Middle Class as a Clothing Consumer 4. "People Dress so Brightly Here!": Exploring Social Distinctions Through Clothing5. "When I Put on a Fur Coat, Everyone Knows I am Russian": Clothing Consumption of Russian Migrants in Finland6. From Russia to Finland: Exploring Cross-border Shopping7. Fashion and Time: The Lifespan of Clothing8. "Semiotic Baggage" and Fashion Conclusion

Olga Gurova is an Academy of Finland research fellow, Department of Social Research,University of Helsinki, Finland.