An interesting experiment is happening with our business during the pandemic

Sergey Kondratiev, director of the Omsk Iceberg 8 company, talks about logging into Alibaba and the possibilities of a "golden" account. The Export Support Center continues the "Success Stories" section, in which we talk about Omsk entrepreneurs who successfully compete with world production leaders.

The company's products can be seen in all hypermarkets of the country — from Moscow to Kaliningrad. These are red and black caviar in jars and by weight, shrimp, Kamchatka crab, scallops, sea cocktail. Everything is very tasty!

— Sergey, how did the idea to start seafood business in our agricultural region come about?

— After studying what is sold in Omsk and other regions, I realized what benefits I can bring by offering seafood. And, of course, I saw this as a great opportunity to boost my business. The first thing I did was figure out how to add value.

— There are other seafood companies in Omsk. What is your difference?

— We have a unique assortment. And we are constantly increasing our expertise — we know from which water area and at what time of the year seafood should be bought, so that they are useful and safe. There is, of course, knowledge that we keep secret. After all, accumulating them and increasing competence is a lot of work that we have been doing since 2009. All the information we collect is conveyed to our employees. To do this, we publish books about each seafood (which we deal with). And they have to study them.

— Apparently, such books are useful, since you already sell in 92 cities and five countries around the world…

— Absolutely! By the way, I write them myself. Our clients also like that Iceberg 8 is an understandable partner who adheres to the agreements. It is not uncommon for those who have already been "burned" trying to work with untested companies to apply. They especially appreciate the stable quality and service of Iceberg 8. Our trustworthiness is also confirmed by the fact that we are members of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, certified in the Cerberus system. This certification allows us to ship products for export within the Customs Union, which is very convenient for customers.

— Where are you exporting your products today?

— Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus and Korea are on our list. We are actively engaged in dialogue with partners from Southeast Asia. We have set ourselves the task of creating a product that, according to its technical characteristics, will suit our partners from this region. We have already received a technical assignment from them, on the basis of which we have produced and sent samples. In general, our further expansion into Asia depends on whether we can get an up-to-date product that suits our partners in the course of this work. That's what we're working on!

— Sergey, do you keep statistics on where seafood from Iceberg 8 is loved more and eaten more (per capita)?

— In fact, these indicators depend not only on the taste preferences of the population, but also on the quality of work of our departments. Those regions to which we pay great attention consume more. Well, we choose the region of expansion based on the saturation of the market and our capabilities. Our task is not only to develop ourselves, but also to enable our partners to make good money with us. That's why we just keep track of where we can offer our product range and — technically competently, do our job perfectly!

— What role did the Omsk Region Export Support Center play in the development of your business?

— I helped Iceberg 8 strengthen its position through major international exhibitions, creating all the conditions for participation in them. All that was needed from us was boldness! The FoodExpoQazaqstan-2019 exhibition became a landmark for our company: everything was as efficient as possible, to the point — just the way we like it! I would like to have more such events. Although it is necessary to allocate an entire department of employees to prepare and participate in each exhibition (there are many events), it is worth it. The effect of participation is long—lasting - the partners we met there can apply for another year, or even several years after the exhibition.

— Has your work changed during the pandemic?

— An interesting experiment is happening with our business during the pandemic. First of all, we began to monitor the company's performance more closely, and as a result, we made a number of improvements. We have launched new projects that, after the end of the pandemic, will allow us to occupy the market as quickly as possible, and we have recruited employees for them. That is, we did not stop developing, working as if we had already come out of this "painful" period — and everything is fine. This is a strategy that suits sustainable companies.

— So instead of shutting down your capacities, you are expanding?

—Exactly. We are expanding our production facilities and preparing new positions for launch. There are a lot of ideas — now the main task is to consistently implement them and "finish them up": after launching each new position, launch a sales strategy and marketing.

— Are your future plans related to working on online platforms?

— Yes, indeed! Here I'll talk about the Export Support Center again. The idea to apply there was submitted by the governor of the Omsk region Alexander Burkov. He told about this Center in the club of entrepreneurs "Momentum". I listened and went there. As a result, in addition to assistance with participation in major international exhibitions, we received a "golden" account on Alibaba's leading trading platform (this is a premium supplier status with comprehensive product promotion measures).

I'm telling you for sure — if it weren't for the Center, we wouldn't have entered Alibaba, it's not easy and expensive. We are just starting there, but we expect an increase in the flow of customers almost immediately. At the same time, the main goal of the company is to reduce risks (both geographical and currency). By increasing the volume of exports, we will no longer depend on the situation in the regions and the ruble exchange rate. As a result, this will have a positive impact on all our customers.

— Good luck to you!

Small and medium-sized businesses can also use the services of the Export Support Center free of charge: translation of materials into foreign languages, organization of participation in international exhibitions, business missions, search for partners abroad, placement on international trading platforms and much more.

For more information, see the "Services" section of the website. Reference: The Omsk Region Export Support Center carries out activities within the framework of the implementation of national projects in the region "Small and medium-sized entrepreneurship and support for individual entrepreneurial initiative", as well as "International cooperation and Export".