I would prefer myself to own all of my brand, where everything I am responsible for myself.
— Roustam Tariko
When you have premium brands, you have to have the right balance of communicating all of your values.
I had dreams about working for a big foreign company.
I had English grammar book and started to teach myself. I read 'Catcher in Rye,' in Russian. I was amazed at freedom in 'Catcher in Rye!' Freedom to have those perceptions of life!
Considering that Americans are now moving away from whiskey, moving away from brown spirits in general, I believe that they will all join Russians who drink vodka straight. They will sip it like cognac.
I don't very much distinguish when I'm working. I do what I like to do: the time changes and my activity changes.
I launched Imperia at the Statue of Liberty because I wanted to use something symbolic. I like American society because it always wants to do something new and better.
I don't believe in public companies... I would prefer to risk my own money, make any necessary changes fast and grow as quickly as possible.
We buy the most expensive grain available growing on the best part of Russian land called black soil. We also play close attention to the purity of the water - we get it from Lake Ladoga. We store it ourselves to specific conditions. We carefully manage distillation at my distillery in Moscow.
Money is always an indicator of a job well done.
I own 100% of everything because I like to control what I do.
Lots of businesses built in the early 1990s were not very transparent, not only by Russians, but also by foreigners.
I started like many young Russian people in the beginning of perestroika when it seemed that everything was possible.
I was proud of my Soviet country, of wearing Young Pioneer uniform, bombarded by my mother's Communist propaganda.
There are a lot of people who are trying hard to sell themselves as Russian vodkas.
I always wanted to work on the consumer market; I always wanted to work with people.
I believe in emotional branding.
What I'm primarily responsible for is products. Everything is developed with my personal involvement. Second is client communication. Everything to do with product and consumer is my primary focus. I also deal with everything which relates to investment and partnership. Distribution, finance, administration, I don't do.
Wherever I am, I start my day, it's the same. I'm not an early bird. I'm not waking up at five o'clock, six o'clock; it's usually seven-thirty, eight o'clock, and I will then read the newspapers, emails from around the world and make phone calls.
The only warning I'd give is - make sure you are strong enough and committed enough in your business pursuits. It is commitment and belief, not just the bottom line, that should drive you.
You need to be honest and always see new opportunities coming. So I call it intuition, innovation, execution - these are my working principles.
Russians really needed a product that would be not as strong as vodka and not as feminine as cheap sparkling wine, so Martini was a good solution.
My biggest entertainment in Moscow was to go to the subway and watch people. When American students visited, I watched them; I learned English from them.
I am president of Russian Standard Company, biggest luxury vodka in Russia. My bank, Russian Standard Bank, issues biggest number of credit cards in Russia. I want for Russian people to have their own best vodka, their own best bank, their own best credit card.
If you do things you like to do, then your life will be easy.
What's my expectation in the U.S.? I would like to replace Grey Goose.
A lot of people offered me to go public, but I have always rejected it.
I believe there is not any big difference between any consumer business, whether it's a bank or insurance or vodka or chocolate, whatever it is.
I do not separate my job and my personal life; therefore, I never work and never rest.
From the country with limited hope to grow your own business and express your own personality, Russia has become the land of significant opportunity.
