The silent Russian takeover of key business sectors in Georgia leaves locals sidelined

Coming in tens of thousands after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russian migrants are rapidly reshaping Georgia’s tourism, hospitality and IT sectors, displacing local businesses, undercutting guides, exploiting tax loopholes and raising economic, cultural and national-security concerns.

Once there was a little café, Poni da Daini, on Zubalashvili Street in the centre of Batumi, Georgia’s second-largest city on the Black Sea. It offered sweets, cakes and coffee brewed in hot sand – Batumi-style. Indira Ebralidze, the owner, managed her small business alone and did not have to pay rent, yet still failed to make a profit. She was forced to close the café after a year. But the main reason, she says, was the growing number of Russian cafés in the neighbourhood.

“Actually, it couldn’t and didn’t work! Why? Because 90% of all cafés in the old part of Batumi belong to the occupants [Russia occupied 20% of Georgia after a short war in 2008]. Russian tourists know where to eat, as they receive the addresses by mail in advance… [Last year] the high season was a complete failure, I can say. If you manage to take home just enough to cover your rent or staff salary, there’s no profit! I was lucky I owned the premises… You can see for yourselves the place is wonderfully located, so why should I close it down?”

As we walked along the street, Indira stepped into several cafés and asked the price of coffee in Georgian. She received replies in Russian: Здравствуйте (“Hello”) Ничего не понимаю (I don’t understand), Я немного понимаю, но к сожалению пока плохо говорю (I understand a little, but sadly I don’t speak well).

The story of Indira’s café is just one example of the negative effect caused by the businesses opened by those Russians who had moved to Georgia. 

In spring 2022, Tbilisi’s mayor, Kakha Kaladze, described the Russians queuing at the Larsi Pass in the Caucasus as “tourists”: “We welcome the inflow of tourists… The authorities will do their best to support the trend. It is directly connected to economic growth, and to the increased number of workplaces, boosting employment…”

The reality, however, has proved quite different. Most Russian migrants register as individual entrepreneurs or small business owners and benefit from tax exemptions. While they have indeed created jobs, these largely go to fellow Russians rather than Georgians.

Russian Guides and Propagandists

Seeing Russian tourists or Russian-speaking guides in Georgia is nothing unusual. They can be found everywhere – in Tbilisi, across the regions, on mountain trails and at seaside resorts. But since 2022, their presence has expanded dramatically.

Georgian guides in Tbilisi, Kutaisi and Batumi say Russian migrants rapidly took over their work and now control around half of the sector.

According to them, Russian guides create their own routes and promotional materials, operate both online and offline, and even open their own hotels. Beyond the financial impact, they warn of a more serious issue: Russian guides distort Georgian history, present misleading facts and omit any mention of the occupied territories of Abkhazia and Samachablo (South Ossetia) when speaking to tourists from Russia and Europe.

We spoke to Lela Gogava, Executive Secretary of the Certified Guides of Georgia. With 18 years of experience, she works in both French and Russian. She says the number of Russian guides has multiplied, and they employ only other Russians, leaving no need for Georgian guides or drivers. Russian tourists also prefer to hire them, which has severely reduced the income of local professionals:  

“Some hadn’t even worked as guides, but decided it was a rather lucrative job, so they took over the sector. They bring Russian-speaking visitors from Russia and Belarus… By the way, Ukrainians, Byelorussians, Turks and Iranians do the same – they often arrive with their own guides, but Russians outnumber them… The situation in Batumi is particularly dire. Many Russian-speaking Georgian guides have lost their jobs. Some of them worked with pilgrim groups, but now have less work because Russians bring religious groups themselves. […] The political turmoil has played a significant part because nobody knows whether we’re heading towards Europe or Russia. There surely are very few visitors from Europe. And all the while, the government says it’s all right because the Russian market is massive. The problem is that the Russians have completely taken over our market.”

Russian Businesses in the Tourism Sector

Visibly shaken, Lela adds that Russians are not just guides but also propagandists: “They don’t have the right information about the buildings in Tbilisi, so they invent their own stories and present Russia in an overly positive light. They talk about Russians' presence in the Caucasus as if nothing would have been possible without them…”

In Kutaisi, Russian-speaking guides Dali Chitishvili and Eka Tabagari, with 15 and 6 years’ experience respectively, say their workload has dropped sharply and their incomes have suffered.

“Compared to previous years, there is very little work; we aren’t as busy. When a Russian guide arrives, they come on a tour with us once, learn what they need, and then start working independently. I’m sure they’re not giving accurate information. When I had Russian tourists, I used to tell them about the 1801 annexation of Georgia, and they would say the term ‘annexation’ was inappropriate because Georgia had asked Russia for help. I explained that we did indeed ask for help against invaders, but never imagined our kingdom would be abolished. Now, who knows what Russian guides are saying? It’s not hard to imagine,” says Eka.

Needless to say, there is no way of monitoring what Russian guides say. Nor is there any accurate record of how many Russian guides or tour operators work in the country. They are not required to register “guide” or “tourism” as their primary activity, making their numbers impossible to track. There is also no regulatory framework for guiding: no certification or licence is required. Certified guides exist, but certification is voluntary and largely symbolic.

“No one has ever been stopped or fined for guiding a tour,” says Giorgi Dartsimelia, a board member of the Association of Georgian Certified Guides.