Torgsin

Torgsin (Russian: Торгсин) were state-run hard-currency stores that operated in the USSR between 1931 and 1936. Their name was an acronym of torgovlia s inostrantsami (Russian: торговля с иностранцами), "trade with foreigners." Unlike the later Beryozka stores, Torgsin stores were open to Soviet citizens, provided they had access to hard currency, gold, or jewels. Torgsin was established by the Sovnarkom chairman Vyacheslav Molotov's order of 5 July 1931 and disbanded on 1 February 1936 [1].

Other countries later employed similar hard-currency stores, including Pewex in the Republic of Poland, Intershops in the German Democratic Republic and Friendship Stores in the People's Republic of China.