Vyacheslav Borisov, the Director of Hockey School
I have friends who work in the field of hockey. We decided to open a school Hockey Planet in Moscow and Prague. If in Moscow training takes place in the format of additional training, in Prague the school is designed for professionals.
Our hockey school Hockey Planet started its work on January 16, 2016. Then it was only additional training, hockey camp, but six months later we assembled a team. In August, we launched our team to the championship of Kazakhstan.
Initially, we understood that we need to enter the international market. Two more schools are planned to be opened in Russia. There is also interest in Kazakhstan.
All schools use one program, have a brand and all perform under one logo.
I spent my professional career in the hockey club Barys. I came to Astana, initially, when the school was supposed to open. I knew the coaches, kids, this was a familiar town.
We tried to start working in Almaty, but it required a lot of attention and time, and I could not leave Astana without attention.
We cannot say that in Russia and Kazakhstan there are huge differences among children. We are engaged in a similar work, the children are paying the same attention, I train six to seven times a week, sometimes two times a day.
The approach to work and professionalism are important for us. We always pay attention to how we do the work. We are looking for qualified trainers.
Our plans include the development of schools. We want children to continue their development and promotion in the Championships. We want to raise those players who can be great players in the future and play for the national team.
Dina Kabdolla, 27, hometown — Almaty, founder of Aya by DK brand
In 2015 the company was founded AYA. Stylish prints, unique collection concept, comfort, and details are all Aya brand.
Clothes we produce in the United States in Los Angeles. We work with a professional team in the workshop, which has experience working with designers from different countries.
At the end of March, we presented our brand in the showroom in Almaty. From that moment it began technical work - acquaintance with the new market and customers. We officially opened in June. It was important to open a store in Almaty because Kazakhstan is the place where I grew up.
I managed to gather a great team of guys who love their job and responsible approach to work. I know that there are people in Almaty who represent my brand to the public as well as I do it in Los Angeles.
My capsule collections remain anonymous. For Kazakhstan, we create special seasonal collections that are more suited to the taste of Kazakhstan.
We plan to launch the export of products from Kazakhstan. Also, parallel work is underway on the stores and expansion.
Anna Shelepova, hometown — Moscow, Director of communications at White Rabbit Family
Restaurant holding White Rabbit Family was founded in 2010. The first project was the Italian Luciano. In 2011 White Rabbit was opened and later became the flagship project of the group. In 2013, the group reached the South of the country. We have opened restaurants on the Rosa Khutor in Sochi.
Interest in entering the international market arose simultaneously with the growth of the company. It was clear that the company had mastered Moscow and the southern direction. It needed to grow and develop further, the logical step was the development of the international market. The choice fell on Kazakhstan, because, firstly, in Kazakhstan, we had a partner with whom we started this project it is Alexander Orlov. Bulldozer Group was our partners at the start of the project Selfie Astana. They have been working in this market for a long time, so it was comfortable to enter a new market with them, they helped us a lot. Of course, we chose Kazakhstan also because the market of Kazakhstan is actively developing, including the restaurant market. It was interesting to us to become one of the first Russian restaurateurs in the Kazakhstan market.
The difficulties encountered in Selfie Astana are associated with the search for products. The fact is that one of our principles is to work directly with farmers and exclusively with local seasonal products. Unfortunately, the market in Astana is not as well represented as we would like, but we try to develop and look for small producers. We try to make guests interested in local products, showing what can be done with local products. For example, Anatoly Kazakov, chef Selfie in Moscow, maintains a horse's rib eye.
Moscow guests are more inclined to experiments, but Kazakhstan is more conservative. Kazakhstani people have certain traditional taste habits that they are not always ready to change. Therefore, it is too early to offer them bold experiments, but we hope that together with the restaurant Selfie Astana we will be able to grow new regular guests who will be interested to go to experiments with us, try something new, get impressions, but first, you need to gain trust. We are working to ensure that they were delicious, interesting, comfortable in the restaurant.
It is important to understand that Selfie Astana is not just a project that opened and ended there, it is a living project that has opened and continues to live and develop.
This fall, we plan to start bringing to Selfie Astana tours of various interesting chefs, that is, we will introduce not only our cuisine but also slowly expand the boundaries, introduce new names.
