In recent years, more and more representatives of the female sex are engaged in business and carry out successful projects in various fields.
“I was walking with my eyes closed, with fear of not being able to…”
After graduating from high school in America, I returned to Baku and entered the law faculty. I went to the economy, realizing that this was not mine. Given the fact that the American education system educates people on an ambition basis, I have developed this feature in myself. Therefore, in parallel with my studies at the university, I wanted to find a job.
At that time, girls were not accepted to work, and at first I ran between the University and the office, trying to hide this fact from my parents. And how I found a job! When I started to search in newspapers, suddenly a friend told me to open a new logistics company with employees to work. And I decided to try to get a job there.
I did not have work experience, but there were certain advantages – language and computer skills. Now almost everyone knows and speaks languages and turns out computers, but then computers were not all. I was very inspired to the interview and realized that I would not expect a high salary. 150, concerning the verses revealed about them under the fifth verse). After a few months, I began to explore the process of cargo transportation and gained a very useful experience.
But my conspiracy did not last long (laughs). To the irony of fate, or maybe just because Baku is a small town, my uncle once came to the office, where he made friends with my chief. Now imagine that the scale of the disaster was not taken into account at this moment for me – a person who did not accept the work of a family, who did not need it at all, in public. I lost myself as if I was caught for something illegal… in fact, I learned that everything at home secretly went to work. And I was very dissatisfied.
Of course, it was unpleasant, but I did not realize at the time that it gave rise to the collapse of this stereotype at the age of 17-18. Since in my family there was a large circle of communication, the news flew very quickly. As in any” revolution”, first of all, it happened when something new was met with distrust and negativity, and then everyone followed the same idea.
I often heard in the discussions of my friends or people who knew me in absentia, even the elderly: “why is not I, but it works in perfection…” (laughs) but, as I said, the realization of this has come only now, when I was hand in hand with my closed eyes, filled with fear that it would not happen anyway. It’s like a minefield-go first and do not know when the road will end. The rest was much easier – for restaurants, flower shops, holidays, weddings, etc.opening companies on decor. It is more difficult to be among the first. And you ask the style (laughs).
“I organized a grand opening of the Cartier boutique, thanks to which Patricia Kaas met her future husband…”
So at home they realized that I had other interests and ambitions, and all this, it turns out, is not so scary as it might seem at first glance. Soon I started a completely new streak of life, passed Italdizain work! At that time it was the most advanced company in business management that had an accurate and correct policy that was growing unnoticed.
I fell into Cartier and not only in the finished boutique. I got it at the time of its construction! It was Hell mode, Labor, tears, tears, tantrums, but at the same time look at how something created something great, and gave you a frantic motivation to create, including you! There I learned how to conduct accounting, the tax system, the customs system, jewelry business, work in logistics. But most importantly-it is ” luxury management “and”customer satisfaction”. Despite the fact that I did not work with clients, but always left to buyers strict orders. And it also affected my vision and my Luxury-grade business idea. Here you are a psychologist. We have psychologists working with all our clients were. But this is a completely different story (laughs).
The most spectacular memorial was the opening of Cartier. When I was sent the passports of Monica Belucci and Patricia Kaas, I had a “mistake”in my head to give them a visa. After all, I always looked at this ogre as absolutely unattainable stars, and here I have passports and they ask for a visa! Also, there was a funny incident in which I could not coordinate Kaas’s visits with musicians, Monica and her team, Michele-chef yan Aleno and Bernard Forn (Cartier’s president). In the end, I asked Forn’s assistant to take his private plane Patricia Kaas somewhere, because he did not have time. This week was coordinated, imagine! On this plane, on the way to Baku, Patricia met Michelin-chef Yannik Allen. This is how their novel was created, which eventually ended the wedding! They even talked about it in an interview a few years later.
I worked in the holding for 7 years. Well, after seeing that I was already in the comfort zone, I decided to go further. After all, only the exit from the comfort zone leads us forward, into new, completely different areas. It’s enough to believe and believe in yourself, even if it’s very scary. Merci Baku restaurant, then Merci flowers Boutique, then Merci Event Agency and Savvy Bureau appeared.
“There were a lot of famous people in our restaurant, even the fans were raiding…”
No-one believed in Merci Baku’s success. Starting with the family, ending with all acquaintances. At first, the girl who opened her own business to work, and not just business, stereotypes about the restaurant went! There were not many fashionable restaurants in Baku at the time and especially women’s restaurateurs.
He passed to the place: “who will come to the Old City? This is a dead place.” Then he was really dead place. I was the first to see him [laughs]. But all the frightening speeches, comments in my head that I did not think about, that I did not conduct the market analysis correctly, that I did not take everything “in favor” and “against”, this restaurant has become the most remarkable place in the city. I’m not afraid of this statement! It was the only restaurant where people gathered in turn. I proudly served the guests with my waiters. For our stereotypes, it was also a blow down the belt (smiles). About the fact that the owner of the restaurant served the guests, immediately flew to molva. In general, I believe that the business should be successful, it is necessary to participate in the business itself in the true sense of the word.
I invest in him not only money, but also my strength, energy, soul and love, because I was always very pleasant to hear positive feedback about the restaurant. I am proud to say that” Merci Baku ” is known in all CIS countries. In addition, there are many ulduz – Uma Turman, Stiven Siqal, Shon Pol, Mila Yovovic, Sati Kazanova, Vlad Stashevsky, Jah Khalib and many others here.
Stories about Star trips are certainly many. Starting with the barricades from the fans, ending with proposals to get married! Namely, not to marry, but to marry. This happened during Stashevsky’s Vlad dinner-an old lady, an ardent fan of the singer ran to our restaurant and long confessed her love for him and offered to marry him (laughs).
In general, I am pleased that many people from Azerbaijan and other countries have at least one memorable story in “Merci Baku”. At a glance, how many hand and heart proposals, how much love, how many unforgettable birthdays, which I hear so far, about our restaurant, you need to remember. It’s insanely beautiful! The restaurant must be alive and have a soul. I am proud to say that the best guests of” Merci Baku ” have a great and warm spirit.
“They say that it is difficult to do business in our country, but in fact…”
If you work in” white ” accounting and do not deviate from taxes, no-one will trample anyone in Azerbaijan. If an entrepreneur hides part of the income, then it goes out, the fault of the problem lies with him.
But there are also some inconveniences, for example, due to the lack of a large number of business areas in our country. Because there is little production, there are few factories and, accordingly, we rely on imports everywhere. This does not allow local entrepreneurs to produce products at the full local level. For example, even for the cultivation of chickens, grain must be imported from one country, imported from another country, and equipment must be imported from a third country… and this is no longer profitable.
Moreover, all this nonsense about customs duties and the limit of 300 dollars with delivery per month! How can small businesses and entrepreneurs order basic raw materials for any production? Or simple people who can not find anything here and order from abroad. I did not believe it for a long time, but unfortunately this is true. In any case, I hope that this issue will soon be considered again and our citizens will breathe freely.
Of course, a lot of time is spent on the management of all business projects, but I always find my favorite time (smiles). Because I have done everything myself, I think that no one can cope better. Then I realized that this was the wrong approach and began to delegate authority. It’s been easier since then. From time to time, I turn off the phone and fly to another country for two weeks in retret or yoga classes, I assure you how it is necessary and without my intervention.
“I prefer to work with girls because they are better than men in many settings …”
10 years have passed since I opened” Merci Baku ” and significant changes have occurred in people’s minds. If earlier people saw a young girl in business did not take her seriously, now the situation has improved significantly. At that time, most men thought that a woman could not work. Although I had an external education and a completely different approach to everything, I was treated as a person working on “tapsha”. They did not realize that even if a person is arranged by acquaintance somewhere, no one will keep him, if he is an empty employee who does not fulfill his duties.
Now companies, on the contrary, prefer to cooperate with girls. I prefer to work with women myself, because they are more stress-resistant. Men are very often oriented to public opinion, suffer from unnecessary complexes. Girls, according to my observations, men are wiser, more cunning in their successes, show solidarity with each other.
Previously, I could not make such a statement, but we have already entered the stage of strong, ambitious, purposeful and, most importantly, tolerant women. This especially manifested itself in the pandemic. Recently I came across an article by the British Psychological University that, according to statistics, the percentage of men with a “pandemic” depression in the world exceeds the figure of women by 37%.
“If you understand what you are doing, never burn out…”
Many people have failed in business because they were going to the lucrative field, according to someone who had no understanding. Therefore, never look at others before starting a business. You need to find an area that is interesting to you, and most importantly, find an area that you understand. If you want to grow potatoes, you need to know everything about this process – starting from how to grow grain and how to finish digging it. Instead, you do not need to pay someone money to do it. Because tomorrow, when this person starts to ignore you, you will not be able to understand it at all.
I started from the lowest positions in all areas where I worked. Although I did not need it, I could first sit in the control chair and observe everything from the outside. But I chose another path that brought me to success. If you understand what you are doing, never burn out. And the biggest enemy in business is laziness. By postponing the work tomorrow, you postpone its success, and eventually it may never start.
I am a person who will never stop there, and therefore I have big plans and dreams. At present, I am looking for a suitable place for the opening of “Merci Baku” branch. In addition, I am planning several projects related to trade, fashion and, of course, the restaurant business. “Merci Baku” also turns 10 in September. If recently no locdauna, asteroids and new types of viruses of all kinds do not reach us, then I will gladly welcome a small holiday of our Jubilee.