Soviet Dream World of Retail Trade & Consumption in the 1930

In the early 1930s Soviet authorities launched a campaign to create "socialist" retailing. They also endorsed Soviet consumerism. Paradoxically, Communist leaders promoted a new politics of retailing and consumption even as scarcity persisted and the economy continued to prioritize industrial production at the expense of daily necessities for consumers. How did the Stalinist regime reconcile retailing and consumption with socialism? In exploring this question, this book examines the discourses of trade and consumption, trade policies, social identities, gender roles, and consumer practices that the Stalinist regime's new approach to retailing and consumption engendered. By situating Soviet retailing and consumer culture in a broader comparative context, this book sheds light on how modern industrial states and societies in the interwar era responded to the challenges of mass distribution and consumption. 'Randall's book...makes a welcome and timely contribution to the emerging literature on Soviet consumption, living standards and everyday life in the 1930s and serves as a useful reminder that a consumer society was already in evidence in the Stalin period.' - Business History 'The Soviet Dream World is an excellent contribution to studies of Soviet trade and consumption and a great read for undergraduate, graduate students, scholars, and the general public interested in Soviet history and the history of consumerism.' - Slavic Review