- How did the Krasnogorod business start?
- The owner of the business bought a grain production in Krasnogorodsk a few years ago — previously it was a municipal enterprise that went bankrupt. Baked bakery products and sold in Pskov and Krasnogorodsk. The market in the Pskov region is limited, there are not so many sales channels. We used to work with the "Free Merchant" - there was such a chain of stores, with its closure, our sales volumes sank. They began to think about how to replace them.
- And came up with?
- Yes, we started making crackers and croutons, learned how to dry them properly, add spices. Since the Krasnogorodsky district is rich in berries, they began to produce cranberries in sugar. Even the employees of the bakery themselves pick berries in their free time, and we buy cranberries, including from them. The equipment for cranberries in sugar allows you to make a dragee - sugar dragee for nuts, berries and fruits in chocolate. That is, we "roll up" different types of products in chocolate. We have also launched the production of corn sticks, and recently we have been mastering the production of popcorn.
- How many people work in your production?
- About 50 people work, depending on the load, on the seasonality. For example, crackers are a seasonal product that sells well in summer. Therefore, we are increasing the staff in the summer. There are slightly fewer people working now.
- Do you bake bread and rolls anyway?
- Of course we bake! We sell in Krasnogorodsk, Opochka, Pytalovo and in a number of Pskov stores. We carried out a serious reorganization in logistics after we lost the sales of the "Free Merchant". In Pechora, one of the stores of this chain sold two to three times more than the rest of the small retail. In the "Free Merchant" there was a large assortment: whole bread, halves, slicing, not slicing. It was necessary not only to change logistics, but also to close part of the directions. We have left only profitable and interesting ones: several shops in Pskov, in the social sphere we work with kindergartens and schools.
- What about entering federal retail chains?
- We are negotiating and have almost signed a contract with X5 Retail (a retail grocery company that includes Pyaterochka and Perekrestok), but we are still discussing some points. As soon as we agree, we will resume serious sales in Pskov, but negotiations are going on for a long time. It is not interesting to carry only to small shops, delivery turns out to be expensive.
- And if you open your own store, is it not profitable?
- No, it's not profitable. The meaning of its retail can be as an addition to the main production volumes. And it is much easier to work with entrepreneurs.
- Was there any external help for your business? Maybe you managed to participate in government programs?
- Together with the "Guarantee Fund" [Autonomous non-profit organization "Fund for Guarantees and Entrepreneurship Development of the Pskov Region (Micro-credit Company) - My Business Center], we started going to exhibitions, this gave a huge boost to sales channels, products. For example, we launched the same popcorn, chocolate-covered nuts and corn sticks after we went to the first two exhibitions, listened to contractors and other manufacturers. After all, each exhibition is a communication not only with consumers, but also an expansion of horizons on production technology, on purchase, on equipment. This gave us such a large amount of information, which we then used and expanded our horizons in production. We received a huge number of contacts, which allowed us to sell products outside the Pskov region.
- That is, such exhibitions are needed not only to "shine" their goods, are there any real benefits from them?
- Of course! This is direct communication with consumers who specially come to exhibitions, these are contractors, and communication with them at exhibitions leads to results much faster than by cold calls, offers. Real meetings in most cases end successfully if you both liked everything. Thanks to the exhibitions, our customer base has significantly expanded, the assortment has increased. Just two months ago we sent our goods to Magadan: cranberries, nuts, crackers, popcorn, corn sticks - everything we produce. We met the counterparty in September at an exhibition in Moscow, in October we immediately signed a contract and shipped the products. It's only recently that the goods arrived, the container reached Magadan by sea for 50 days. They promised to send photos of how our product will be placed on the shelves of their stores. We are planning the next shipment immediately after the New Year holidays. We could hardly ever get such contacts and could not even think that we could deliver our products 10 thousand kilometers away. But everything turned out quite simply, and this is thanks to the exhibitions that we went to together with the Guarantee Fund.
- Besides exhibitions, was there any other help from the Foundation?
- Helped with the design of the brand "Red City". Thanks to the Foundation, we have made our own corporate catalog. It seems like such little things that don't seem so important, but when you communicate in this circle, you understand how important and necessary everything is. To develop a design, to make a catalog is quite expensive, and with the support of the Foundation it goes much faster. Now we already know quite a lot about what and how to do, what resources to use, but even here the Foundation helps us with development, printing, brand, design, advertising.
- Where else are you sending our cranberries?
- To Moscow, St. Petersburg, Surgut and all over the center of Russia. We recently went to an exhibition in Belarus, and there we got a lot of contacts with grocery chains. Now we are discussing supply contracts, I think that next year we will start delivering goods to the neighboring state — it remains to run in the technical aspects.
- What difficulties did you have to face in the process of business development?
- The main difficulties are selling. At exhibitions, I am often asked where in Pskov you can buy our products. I say that from the shops only in the "Imperial". For example, in the Urals, central Russia or Belarus, there are many local networks with which you can quickly negotiate. This is more difficult in our region. But we work, for example, with Velikiye Luki Meat Processing Plant, even though it is a specialized store with a small third-party assortment. They began to cooperate with the Stolbushinsky product - again thanks to the exhibition. Joint participation in exhibitions introduced and brought us, local producers, closer to each other. They sell our products at home, we have expanded our sales channels and started selling at churches and monasteries, our cranberries are in good demand there. Although now there are no cranberries in sugar in any federal store, neither in Pyaterochka, nor in Magnet. And there is a demand. Let's try to bring the negotiations to a logical conclusion.
Author: Maria Sokolova
