TRICKS OF THE TRADE:
Foreign companies and some large Russian corporations are increasingly moving or expanding their activities away from Moscow into the Russian regions. The regions attract companies by their great commercial potential and, at the same time, lower costs of doing business. Recently, several small- and medium-sized companies, both Russian and foreign, have emerged in Samara, a city of 1.2 million people that is located some 600 miles southeast of Moscow on the Volga River. As a result, the demand for high‑level office services has increased. The existing supply sometimes cannot satisfy the needs of every customer. However, office services are rapidly developing in Samara.
Office Rental
In spite of its vast commercial and business activities, the city of Samara lacks first-class office space. Nevertheless, there are several ways to find suitable office space.
First, one can lease space in various business centers, which in Samara sometimes combine the functions of trade centers. Stores are located on the lower floors, and available office space is situated on the upper floors. Business centers usually offer well-decorated and convenient suites with telephone lines, security, cleaning, and sometimes a parking space. Furniture, air-conditioning, garage, and additional security are available for an extra fee. The monthly rent in business centers is $7‑20 per square meter.
Another option for finding an office space is to contact a real estate agency. Such agencies will locate office space for a small fee (usually not more than 20‑60 percent of a single monthly rent payment). These agencies often offer office space in former state enterprise buildings. Telephone lines and security are also available there. The main drawback of this option is that upkeep of the office might not be up to Western maintenance standards. Rent in these buildings usually does not exceed $6 per sq. meter monthly and depends on the distance from the city center. Due to a shortage of office space in Samara, some foreign companies rent apartments and convert them into offices.
Labor Market
There are 11 higher education institutions located in Samara. Traditionally, Samara is famous for its technical specialists because of the high concentration of defense industry facilities that used to develop and apply high technologies. At the same time, business and management courses are relatively new for Samara universities. Thus, it is easy to find highly qualified technicians, but hard to find people with Western-type management skills. It is especially difficult for companies to find an English‑speaking accountant, for example. Most of the bilingual work force graduated from the Philological and Foreign Languages Departments of local universities. Usually, they need to be trained to fulfill the required work. One of the informal ways to find office staff is to contact U.S. companies operating in Samara, which might have resumes of previous applicants available. Another way is to advertise in the local newspapers or contact employment agencies. Employment agencies usually charge a percentage of the annual salary of each position.
Telecommunications
All types of telecommunication services are available in the Samara region. Installation of an additional telephone line costs $80‑400. The fee depends on waiting time and service quality. The main local phone companies are Samara-SvyazInform, SamaraTelecom, TeleRoss, and GlobalOne.
Three major cellular phone operators work in Samara: Mobitel (using GSM‑900 standard), BeeLine (AMPS/DAMPS), and Samarskiy Radio Telephone (NMT‑450). The connection costs $100 on average, and the per minute rate ranges from $0.14 to $0.30. Monthly payments are usually under $5. Cellular phones are expensive in Samara, but it is important to note that many cellular telephone companies charge lower fees to customers that buy telephones from them.
Of the 10 Internet service providers in Samara, the main companies are: Kraft‑S (www.kraft‑s.ru), Samara Internet (www.samara.net), and Samara Infonet (www.saminfo.ru). Most Internet service providers do not charge for connecting customers or a monthly fee. A per minute payment scheme is possible, as is unlimited access. The cost of a one-minute call does not exceed $0.02, and unlimited access costs about $50 a month. Reserved lines are also available.
Business Services
Several companies design and print various types of business cards, leaflets, seals, etc. Printing of 200 tricolor business cards costs about $165. The cost to produce 1,000 leaflets is around $300. Prices for advertising in the local press in Samara are much lower than in Moscow.
Some information in this report was provided by the CARANA Corporation, which is funded by USAID.
A list of useful contacts and additional information on Samara can be found at BISNIS Online at www.bisnis.doc.gov/bisnis/country/regions.html#VolgaUrals.
Ekaterina Solovova is the BISNIS representative in Samara.