5 lessons from the success of Oleg Tinkoff

His Work / by admin / December 26, 2019

Ruslan Tsarev

Editor-in-Office Consult "not dull finances».

He started the shuttle in the Soviet Union. Now - on the 43rd line of the list, Forbes. He owns the bank, whose net profit last year was at data Forbes, 19 billion rubles. His state - 2.2 billion dollars. All this is about Oleg Tinkoff.

History of its own success Tinkoff told in the book "I like everything». There he writes not only about business, but about life in general. Here - and only briefly about the business.

Lesson 1. See where you can earn more

The fact that today is called business Tinkoff engaged in Soviet times, when I went to school. In those days it was called the speculation activity and falls under the Criminal Code article.

Young Oleg seriously engaged in cycling. During the regular fees in Tajikistan, he saw in the store Jeans for 50 rubles (there it was unsaleable goods) and bought all the cash. And in your own Leninist-Kuznetsk, Kemerovo region resold.

Today, knowingly supply unsaleable goods looks nonsense. And in Soviet times, it was in the order of things. Where, how much and what kind of product supply, decided not to businessmen and officials. Business in the Soviet Union was not officially, but the official salary does not depend on whether the goods or disperse will lie dead weight. It turns out that in Tajikistan, where it is assumed to wear national dress and shoes gathering dust on the shelves of jeans and sneakers. And in Uzbekistan, where hockey is not in vogue - plastic sticks from Czechoslovakia.

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The inhabitants of Siberia have agreed to pay for all this, because the goods were in demand, and in the stores was absent. In this and did underground business enterprising guys. One of them was Tinkoff.

With a near Tinkoff was 200 rubles (about $ 6000 in today's dollars), it was enough for four of jeans. And at home, where it was a scarce commodity, sold them already for 200 rubles for each. The result was a 300% mark-up.

At the bar in the margins of 200-300% and then Tinkoff oriented.

Cost of 1 kg ravioli "Daria" was 1 dollar sales price - $ 3. Beer Bottles "Tinkoff" - $ 0.3 and $ 1.2 respectively.

However, dumplings, beer, and then the bank will be. In 1988 Oleg entered the university in Leningrad. In high school there were foreign students who travel from home brought a scarce commodity in the USSR. They were selling it to local dealers, one of which was the Tinkoff. At first he was selling goods on the streets, or handed over to other resellers - they came after him right in the Institute during the big change. But Oleg quickly realized - if will carry to his hometown, will earn even more. For cosmetic kit or a tube of lipstick in Leninsk-Kuznetsky gave 15-25 rubles more than in the city on the Neva.

Tinkoff one time with your partner drove to Leningrad cars, who bought in Siberia. In Novosibirsk, the car could have been taken for 50 thousand rubles in St. Petersburg - sold for 80 thousand. Usually peregonschiki rode bought the car on rough roads through half the country. It took some time, and the car were killed. Tinkoff invented better. For 5000 rubles military transport sides brought its cars to Moscow. And from there it is, in-flight sitting inside the car, its course moved to Leningrad. The route between the two capitals has always been exemplary exponential. Tinkoff thus not only deliver the goods in a better state than after traveling through half of the country under its own power, but also reduces the period of turnover of money and goods: often sold → More He earned.

And the Institute Tinkoff never finished.

Realized that if he receives a diploma, his financial career-ceiling - Salary 1000 Soviet rubles per month (289,000 rubles in current prices), and it still should be promoted to director of mine. And he has already earned 10-15 times more.

All his businesses except for bank Tinkoff sold, although they were successful. he explains it this way: I saw that in one niche hit a ceiling on profits, and the new can make more money.

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Lesson 2. Take longer for the image, service and quality

Even in Soviet times was convinced Tinkoff - the customer willing to pay more for quality service. Cosmetics, which brought from Leningrad to his hometown, he marketed the two women workers of factories, where labor is mostly women. Tinkoff through the window he is taken directly to the shop and offered its range. And there were waiting for him: women customers quickly remembered Oleg from Leningrad, which brings a cool makeup and paid even more than the local market. They liked the fact that Tinkoff deliver the goods directly to the shop. Against the background of Soviet stores with empty counters and sellers hamyang county is particularly impressive.

In Soviet times, the Tinkoff accidentally spied on, as Roma made fashionable in those years lipstick glitter: In normal lipstick added chopped foil. With such a commodity it never contacted, he took only the one in which quality was assured.

In 1994, Tinkoff chelnochit stopped and launched the first large-scale project - electronics store "Tekhnoshok" in St. Petersburg, which is then grown network represented in major cities countries. Sellers sent to study at the American chain stores Good Guys.

Well-trained American officers met a buyer in white shirts with smiles and helped select the radiogram, suggests what to look for when buying a TV.

Today, it will not surprise in Russia. And in the mid-90s was a shock. Goods in Tinkoff was more expensive than its competitors, but the buyers were going to him. The turnover of the first store up to 50 thousand dollars a day.

Queue Tinkoff lined thanks to a powerful marketing campaign. The brand creates value added tax, he said. On the promotion of Tinkoff product's emphasis and subsequent businesses: dumplings, beer, a chain of restaurants, bank. But each of his brand, he filled with real content. If this is an electronics store, then a premium level of service and quality products. If dumplings, then made with the latest technologies on the Italian equipment. If a beer - that it is cooked on the German line of German technology and German from the malt. And so on. So that the consumer pays not only for show-off. Although for them, too.

Today Card "Tinkoff Bank" customers ulterior motive delivered by courier. This is also a service for which the buyer is willing to pay extra.

Not without punctures. As soon as a time to forget about the quality - Business released a heavy plop. When Tinkoff learned that the United States can sell processed timber 1 $ 200 per cubic meter, while in Russia its cost - $ 200, I decided to start supplying. The first container with the Russian forest left to cheer.

But to make a real, significant volumes required. In pursuit of the number of Tinkoff ceased to monitor the quality of, and in the US this number is not passed. There is strictly monitoring the number of knots per cubic meter of wood. Furniture factory, which he supplied the wood directly, immediately noticed that something was wrong and stopped to take, and wholesalers agreed to take only at cost. While Tinkoff was looking for buyers, increased bills for storage of cargo in US ports. It turned out that the proceeds of the wood is not enough to pay for them. Tinkoff realized cheaper to fix the loss and go out of business. On wood, he lost about $ 2 million.

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Lesson 3. Do not be afraid to borrow

Tinkoff first advantage of borrowing for businesses in the late '80s, when carried from Leningrad to Siberia cosmetics. One of the vendors offered to pay for part of the goods later. Tinkoff sharply increased profits and have realized - to buy comfortable and advantageous in debt.

The dashing 90 Tinkoff actively borrowed from the authoritative "old chap" - they always were carried out free money. Tinkoff is always neat and fully return the money and instill interest. The bandits were happy, it is well to earn it. And the Tinkoff on their money - even more.

Such business relationships for Tinkoff turned bonus "lads" do not touch him, and others did not give offense.

In 2003, Tinkoff, who by this time had time to enter into the beer business, has decided, in addition to having a small brewery to build a plant with capacity of 2 million hectoliters. It took $ 100 million, which have not been Tinkoff. The first 13 million that went to prepay equipment manufacturers for the future of the enterprise, he attracted through the issuance of bonds of its network of restaurants.

The annual turnover of restaurants amounted to $ 9 million, so that the bonds were not fully secured. This did not prevent Tinkoff repay them exactly two years later, as planned, and to pay all the promised coupon income. The average bond yield was 17% per annum - this is a high figure even for corporate securities. For comparison, the yield of government bonds of federal loan bonds (OFZ) - an average of 8%. The remaining money Tinkoff took a loan from the bank. Factory built, with debts paid off.

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Lesson 4. Do not believe the prejudices

To open the first store "Tekhnoshok" Tinkoff bought a room for him. In fact, he bought not only the building, but also a business that it led the former owner. He wanted to concentrate fully on a new area of activity and needed money to live for its development, and therefore marketed assets, which were not connected with this direction. Tinkoff did not continue the business of the former owner of the premises - would prefer to start from scratch his own. But the fact of sale of the business in St. Petersburg 90s still considered nonsense.

When he Tinkoff has sold "Tekhnoshok", in the business community accepted his decision as a result of the failure. Successful business did not sell, and Tinkoff appeared pioneer.

The banker, who was credited Tinkoff, while selling electronics, refused to allocate money for the start of production of dumplings: "Oleg, where you climb? What dumplings? Your business - TV ". I had to look for other sources of funding. And it found.

"Where do you climb? It's not yours, "- Tinkoff heard before the start of each new business, including bank. But stereotypes spat and did not listen to the skeptics - and he was right.

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Lesson 5. Friends with finances

Tinkoff in his books does not demonstrate such love to the figures, such as John D. Rockefeller. But this does not mean that he does not attach importance to them. The first full-time financier from Tinkoff appeared as early as the period of "Tekhnoshok". While in the 90s still could afford to be financially illiterate - the margin was so great that all forgiving.

But Tinkoff always known costs, margins and profits of the product. And before the opening of "Tinkoff Bank" ordered a major US study, does it make sense to do so. A study at a cost of several hundred thousand dollars. Specific figures are not Tinkoff calls. He paid, because the matter had to invest tens of millions of dollars, and it is better to lose a few hundred thousand, if it turns out that in fact there is no sense, than to drain all the money sunuvshis random.