Sergey Vasilievich Perlov, born in 1835 in Moscow and died there in December 1911, was a Russian merchant of the first guild from the famous dynasty of tea traders, the Perlovs. In 1887, by the decree of Alexander III, he received hereditary nobility and actively engaged in charity, paying special attention to the monastery in Shamordino.

Sergey was born into an Orthodox family of Vasily Alexeyevich Perlov and his third wife, Elena Petrovna Tugarinova, in a house on 1st Meshchanskaya Street. His father, a hereditary honorary citizen and successful merchant, became wealthy through tea trading, in which he introduced many improvements. Sergey was educated at home.

After his father's death in 1869, the business was divided between Sergey and his brother. Brother Semyon focused on the mass market, while Sergey preferred wealthy clients and the aristocracy. From 1890, he separated from the family business and began to focus on the domestic market, creating the "Partnership of Tea Trade 'Sergey Vasilievich Perlov and Co.' By 1915, he had more than forty branches across Russia.

Perlov cared for his workers, sometimes hiring more than necessary to give people the opportunity to earn. He was a practical, active, sometimes impatient, and religious person, involved in various charitable committees and institutions in Moscow. Since 1880, he was a member of the St. Petersburg House of Mercy, a guardian of several orphanages and other establishments in both capitals of the Russian Empire. L. N. Tolstoy mentioned Perlov in connection with one of his charitable projects at the end of the century. In 1881 and 1893, he was a member of the Moscow City Duma.

In 1887, on the centenary of the firm, Perlov received nobility, and the motto "Honor in Labor" along with an image of a tea bush adorned his family coat of arms. A public celebration was held in Moscow on this occasion.

In 1893, the Perlov Tea House was built on Myasnitskaya Street, 19 in Chinese style, which has survived to this day and was restored in 2002. The house housed a shop where tea was packaged and sold in tin boxes. Perlov was a supplier to the imperial court of Russia and several foreign monarchs and princes. He collected Eastern weapons, Chinese paintings, and porcelain, had a home theater, and loved music.

In 1861, Sergey married A. Y. Prokhorova, who came from a family of manufacturers. She often visited Optina Monastery and Shamordino Monastery, coming to the elder Ambrose of Optina. In 1885, her husband followed her for the first time, made a donation, and returned to the monastery in 1889. After that, he took Shamordino under his patronage: he built a water tower, organized workshops, erected a bell tower, a tomb, and much more. He cared for the needs of the nuns and children from the orphanage, supplied tea to the monastery and Optina Monastery, without interfering in the internal affairs of the monastery.

Sergey Vasilievich Perlov died in Moscow in 1911 after a serious illness, having confessed and received communion. He left a widow, who a few years later took monastic vows with the name Ambrosia. He was buried in Shamordino. Many of his charitable deeds, done secretly, were only known to relatives after his death.