Alexander Kolobov, head of the Shokoladnitsa coffee-shop chain, spoke to the Leader about his career and the peculiarities of operation in the fledgling coffee shop business of the Russian capital.

What is your educational background?

I studied at a math-specialty high school in Moscow up to the ninth grade, after which I went to England and attended a preparatory school there. I graduated from the London School of Economics and Politics and returned to Russia about 18 months ago.

Did you become involved with the coffee-shop project immediately upon your return from England?

Yes. We began to remodel our first coffee shop at the Oktyabrskaya metro station about a year and a half ago.

How did you come across this project?

It was originally my idea. I first thought about it roughly three years ago, when the first coffee-shop chains began to develop in London. The coffee culture there is also quite young — not older than six or seven years. The first major coffee-shop chain to develop operation in London was the Seattle Coffee Company, a precursor of Starbucks that Starbucks bought out three years ago upon entering the London market. I noted that we had nothing similar in Russia. At the time that the idea of a coffee-shop chain first occurred to me, there was only Coffee Bean in Moscow, but I didn't even know about it. When I began preparing for the project, I visited it, and I liked it a lot. I figured the market was prepared for coffee-shop chains because the Coffee Bean was so popular. So, we found a place for our first store, and we were satisfied with the first results and decided to go on with the project.

How many people were in the team when you launched the project?

Two people besides me.

And how many people does Shokoladnitsa employ now?

About 100 people. But we're going to be opening two more outlets, which means that will grow to 150-200 people quite soon.

What skills and knowledge that you obtained studying in England have proven to be most useful for you in the implementation of this project?

First of all, business planning, so I didn't have to learn by trial and error, and human-resources management. I can't name anything else. It's an overall attitude rather than anything specific.

What did you have to learn from scratch?

The peculiarities of doing business in Russia, such as dealing with officials and other problems. People's mentality in Russia is also different from that in England.

In what way?

In England, people's motivation is more obvious. If someone has a job, that person can be sure that he or she cannot be arbitrarily fired. What is said in the contract is 100 percent guaranteed. But here many employees don't even have contracts, and those who do have them don't really believe in what is stipulated in their contracts. As a result, some people try to cheat or moonlight. These are the most significant differences — people here are less confident about their future, and money, I fave noticed, is not the most substantial motivating factor for Russians.

Really?

Well, money still is a motivating factor, but not the top one. People, I have noticed, are very highly motivated if their ideas are employed, for example. But this applies to managers, of course.
Another factor is growth prospects. This is especially the case with our company, because it is young and fast-growing. So, people move up the career ladder quite fast. People who joined as junior-level managers are now in charge of some of our outlets.

What means do you use to hire people?

We place job ads in the print media and on the company Website. To find candidates for management positions, we also use recruitment agencies. This segment is quite young and it's hard to find suitable candidates with experience in the coffee business, and we take people with experience in catering or, at least, in management.

In what way is the coffee business different from other segments of catering? What specific knowledge does a person need to have?

First, you have to love coffee. Actually, there's one more difference between the coffee cultures here and in the West. In the West, most people go to coffee shops just to have a cup of coffee. All they need is first-quality coffee. They don't care that much about interior decorations or anything else. In Russia, most people still come to a coffee shop to spend some time. So, they need to be entertained, and what we try to do is promote coffee culture. So, if a person does not understand it, he or she will never be able to explain coffee culture to customers. Also, the accounting system is different because, in most restaurants, food and liquor are the main items; in coffee shops, it's coffee.

What are the most important qualities you seek in applicants for management positions with your company?

As I said, they have to love coffee, they have to be good at interpersonal relations, and they have to be ready for new experiences and experiments because the segment is new and we introduce many new products. Also, they have to be hardworking and be prepared to work long hours and develop professionally along with the company.