The so-called investigation by the British project Bellingcat about Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov doesn't stand up to scrutiny. This was stated today by the Russian Interior Ministry. They noticed the key insight of the article published by the British that, I quote: "According to the Russian Federal Migration Service database the Russians were agents of the GRU". To begin with, there's no GRU since the USSR collapse, it's a well-known fact. And even if they meant the Main Intelligence Directorate they still uttered another portion of ungrounded propaganda because the Federal Migration Service has no departments under the jurisdiction of the Intelligence. And it's impossible to understand if a man works for the Intelligence judging from those databases.
But Petrov and Boshirov may surely become the owners of a promising brand: one of the Russian companies wants to register and gift one to them. That's the brand's name. Well, stylish, to be sure. And lets' ask Natalya Goncharova what's the point of creating such a trademark.
- Natalya, good evening. What's that going to be? Will they sell perfume or what?
- Good evening. Well, not only the perfume.
The Petroff & Boshiroff brand may soon appear in the shops. The range of products is vast. The company which applied for the registration makes no secret: they'll earn money on their sudden popularity.
Alina Smirnova, representative of the "Golden Brand" company: "Our agency hopes to use the great public interest in this situation to attract new clients. The British government provided our compatriots with the great free advertising. We want to gift this application to Mr. Petrov and Mr. Boshirov. Of course, only if they want".
The first offer — tours. According to the tour operators, the main destination point will be the trips to the South-East of Wiltshire county in England: to the very Salisbury, to the famous 123-meter spire. Besides the spire, there are also the ruins of an old castle and the mansion of the Earls of Pembroke. It comes with a sting: the company will hardly obtain accreditation from the British embassy.
Dmitry Davydenko, deputy chairman of Rosturizm community council: “The tour operator activity requires registering in the tour operator registry, requires financial assurance, a tour operator liability insurance of 30 million rubles ($440,000) for the first year, in case of international tourism, and 50 million ($735,000) next year. I think that given the present informational wave, the tours to Salisbury will be popular, at least for some time.”
Product number two: perfume. You remember London's version that Petrov and Boshirov allegedly smuggled the Novichok in the Nina Ricci perfume vial. In the interview, they answered flatly: what normal men will carry feminine fragrances with them? But what should be the fragrance for their brand?
Evgenya Balitskaya, perfumer: "The people who encountered some difficulties in their lives usually have a weathered temper. They are strong, confident, and brave due to those challenges. I think this fragrance should combine strength, obstinacy; one should feel an energy in this fragrance. I would make this fragrance chypre, with a hint of a woody note. I think one may make an interesting design, for example, make it look like a pepper spray or a doorknob, so that it fits the theme of the event."
The European media had started talking about the Petroff & Boshiroff brand even before there was any information about the manufacturing of their production. For some reason, most of the articles are in the Italian press: Ansa, La Repubblica, Il Foglio. Are the local perfumers afraid of competition? The journalists even speculated on the name, claiming that it must have a poisonous one.
Alexander Tarasov, a strategic director of an ad agency: “"t's a big question about the mass audience: will the people be ready to take such a risk? I think the situation on the European markets will be the same because there are people who are not so friendly towards Great Britain, in the light of Brexit, internal European problems, immigration, and so on. The brand will surely be popular with them".
If they want to grow, then they can always register near Salisbury: Great Britain gives patents to everyone, from Europe to the USA. But here's the main question: do they need it? In the interview, Petrov and Boshirov made it pretty clear: "leave us alone". So probably it will all remain potential.
- Natalya Goncharova about the Petroff & Boshiroff brand.
