Interviews

First of all, I must say that before the crisis Ukrainian market was very large, monthly sales reached 40-50 cars. Ukraine ranked the fifth in Europe by market size. In this sense Ukrainian market was completely European.

Demands of Ukrainian customer to a car have changed somewhat. In the middle segment they became more European. In the past people by all means preferred large cars, now small and economical cars are in greater demand. In addition, diesel engines become more popular. In premium class tastes remained almost the same.

I would like to note an interesting trend – after the crisis “grey” import sustained significant losses which had an impact on qualitative market structure.

In the past year, we proposed new Porsche Cayenne and upgraded Range Rover that found a quick sale. Sale of one Range Rover affords a profit comparable with sale of 10-20 Ford cars. However it is Ford that remains the priority for Winner.

It is the mass brand meant for the middle class and it provides the largest share of Winner’s proceeds. Thus despite high profit per one premium car it is generally incorrect to compare sales of, say, Porsche and Ford.

If we talk about quantitative indices, in the past year we sold 9 543 cars. In regional terms, premium cars account for over 40% of sales and middle class cars account for about 30% of sales in Kyiv and Kyiv oblast where the purchasing power is concentrated.

We intend to extend our network by all means. Growth trends of the network will be determined by growth trends of the automotive market in Ukraine. It is very important for us that all our dealers survived the crisis, and their general number has not changed. We plan at least one Ford dealer per oblast to the end of the year.

What new products do you plan for the customers?

 

We have five world-known brands, and each of them has its line of development. According to 2010 results, for the first time in the history of automotive sales in Ukraine Ford reached a market share of 4.7% (according to Auto-Consulting data). We will continue promotion of Ford Mondeo which upgraded model was presented in the past year. Speaking about off-road cars, no doubt it is Ford Kuga. In 2011 new models of Ford C-Max and Focus will be brought to the market.

Speaking about Jaguar development we will focus on new XJ. Speaking about Volvo we will stake on cross-over cars and new generation of S60/V60. Speaking about Porsche we will continue developing Cayenne and Panamera. However the most striking changes will happen to Land Rover business. First, Land Rover and Range Rover will become separate brands according to the global manufacturer’s policy. Secondly, the world will see new revolutionary Range Rover Evoque that will be the first space effective Range Rover.

I can’t say that Ukrainian automotive business has specific management style that significantly differs from the neighboring countries and Europe as a whole. The company management principles are common for all markets.

Single differences include individual mentality features and peculiarities of public regulation. I would note a habit of Ukrainians to put things off till the last minute. Sometimes it hampers business a lot because you cannot plan your work ahead. Efficient work requires balanced development and order. Ukrainians used to live and work all the time under permanent depression. By the way before financial crisis at times of economic recovery in Ukraine my western colleagues from Ford considered Ukrainian automotive market a recessive one.

A huge problem for Ukrainian business is bribery. It is bad that Ukrainian youth brought up in the post-soviet times is already spoiled with this.

Training center certainly has impact on personnel level, however it was opened not from the time of the company establishment. The center isn’t the point. I believe that the secret of good training is in strict internal company standards, entirely western business management policies applied from the time of the company establishment in 1992. We value transparency, honesty, non-acceptance of bribery, and professionalism in all relations with dealers, in-house customers, vendors and our customers.

By the way, we have low employee turnover. Before the crisis our employees were pirated by other automotive companies but this is quite common practice in the growing market. After the crisis it has completely discontinued.

Adaptation was hard not due to business but general living conditions in the post-soviet Ukraine. I came to Ukraine during the time of trouble. A foreigner had difficulty to understand many things. No food in the stores, tickets for sugar, no legal currency exchange… I was impressed with scale of corruption. But I was young and full of enthusiasm – it helped me to get used to life in the country. Another important factor contributing to adaptation was my love to Ukraine. This contributed to my upbringing – though I am from the West, but have Ukrainian spirit. And the fact that I came back to my roots, on my parents’ land was adding me strength and inspiration.

As for the business, an important nuance in the issue of development has been the consistency of the principles and approach to business – we were and remain fair and transparent. Perhaps if I was more flexible on the issue of bribes, I would have achieved greater success in less time.

What milestones in your managerial career would you highlight?

 

I had time to work in three different cities – Philadelphia, Chicago and Kyiv. Work in each city is a separate milestone. However, the longest and probably the most valuable at the same time is work in Ukraine. If I briefly describe my years in Ukraine, they are closely related to the development of Winner. A period from 1992 to 1996 was a period of adaptation, everything was new and strange to me, the company was at the development stage, we recruited staff and established business processes.

In 1998 Ukraine found itself in a deep financial crisis. We had very difficult times. Sales practically ceased, the reduction of personnel occurred.

After this crisis, I went to the USA for two years. During this time internal crisis in the company became sharper, and after returning in 2002 I had to recover the company from scratch. In 2004 the company received a status of official importer of brands such as Jaguar, Land Rover and Porsche. Since 2005, things went much better. It may be said that in 2005 foreigners discovered that Ukraine exists on the map of the world which contributed significantly to attracting investors. The automotive market was rapidly growing to the end of 2008. In 2006 we began construction of a new Winner distribution center in Kapitanivka, near Kyiv, which was completed in 2009. This ultramodern complex that has no analogues in Ukraine in terms of equipment, with an area of over 11 thousand square meters. But during vigorous growth we also had problems, this period was characterized by instability in laws, it was unclear whether Ukraine enters the WTO, how customs duties will change, etc. This uncertainty significantly complicated planning.

The global financial crisis in 2008 was very challenging strength test for our company. We had very big problems with debt – total debt reached 100 million Euros, but tough times are over. I would say that I learned new knowledge and gained experience at each stage of my life and value them all.

In particular automotive business – no, but business in general – yes. I love my business and work brings me pleasure. Had I changed the area of activity, I would have probably engaged in Ukrainian politics. I know how the western system works and see what happens in Ukraine. In this context I think my experience would have been useful.

Many things. I love working with people, without this quality business is impossible. Also I just love working in Ukraine because of high dynamics and challenges.

Usually with my family. We like traveling and skiing. I am a fan of Klychko brothers and love to visit their fights. Generally I like to root for Ukrainian athletes, especially in the international arena. I am not particularly fond of sports but like playing golf.