Evgeny Chichvarkin is a talented entrepreneur, founder of the Euroset chain of stores. In the mid-2000s, the authoritative Forbes magazine included this man among the businessmen of Russia, and in 2008 called him one of the most eccentric and extravagant millionaires on the planet.
Childhood and youth
Evgeny Aleksandrovich Chichvarkin was born on September 10, 1974, in the city of great opportunities - Moscow. Developing the theme of family, it is worth noting that the parents of the future businessman were in no way connected with business and commerce. The father of the founder of the Euroset holding was a civil aviation pilot, and his mother worked as an engineer-economist at the Ministry of Industry and Trade (formerly the USSR Ministry of Foreign Trade).
Among other things, his parents were from two of the largest cities in Russia, and therefore the businessman often calls himself half-Leningrader, half-Muscovite. Speaking about his origin, Evgeniy once noted that his distant ancestors belonged to the Moksha people.
IN teenage years Evgeniy masterfully combined school with a wild life. In conversations with media representatives, the businessman often said that he found time for parties, homework and reading books on philosophy.
After graduation high school the future entrepreneur entered the State Academy management. At this university, the ambitious young man began to study the economics of vehicle management. However, the meager student scholarship was constantly not enough, and therefore very soon Evgeniy found a part-time job at the local clothing market.
Here the guy looked at the world from the inside retail, understood the laws of “street economics”, and also acquired the necessary experience in working with clients. In 1996, Evgeniy entered graduate school at the State Academy and, in parallel with his studies, began to hatch plans to create his own business.
In April 1997, Zhenya, together with his friend Timur Artemyev, created a company called Euroset, which subsequently began to grow rapidly and develop rapidly.
Business
The first Euroset store was opened on Leninsky Prospekt in Moscow. The company was exploring a completely new market for Russia, since no one had heard of cellular retail in the country before. Most people used pagers as their primary means of communication. IN next couple years, the network of Euroset salons began to grow rapidly. The first sales points appeared outside of Moscow. Some time later, representative offices of the company began to appear even outside of Russia.
Evgeny Chichvarkin - head of the Euroset company A record year in this regard was 2006, when in just twelve months 1,976 new salons were created throughout the country. In the late nineties - early two thousand, Evgeniy developed the concept of advertising promotion for his company, which was based on the use of shocking, extraordinary and deliberately provocative marketing moves.
Worth mentioning, for example, are such scandalous PR campaigns as “Take off your clothes for the phone” and “Miss Breasts”. This approach attracted enormous attention to the Euroset company and laid the necessary basis for all subsequent successes. Salon network cellular communications grew rapidly, but it was at this moment that serious scandals began to flare up around Chichvarkin’s business. It all started with accusations of understating customs duties when importing phones into Russia.
In addition, the Euroset company found itself at the center of proceedings related to the disappearance of its former forwarder Andrei Vlaskin, who had previously been convicted of theft mobile phones.
In 2009, Chichvarkin was charged under the article “Kidnapping”. Going back, it is worth noting that back in 2008, Evgeny Chichvarkin actively supported all political campaigns and, however, a couple of years later he radically changed his political views.
The reason for this was pressure from the official authorities, who insisted on the sale of the Euroset company and allegedly extorted money from the entrepreneur. One way or another, in September 2008 profitable business for the sale of mobile phones was still sold.
Chichvarkin agreed to the proposed conditions and transferred the full stake to the ANN investment group and the entrepreneur. A month later, the millionaire left his post as head of the Euroset company and flew to London.
Evgeny Chichvarkin left Russia in 2008. Two years after moving to the UK, the businessman started selling wine, in particular, he opened the Hedonism Wines alcohol store in London, with a total area of 700 sq.m. It is known that the range alcoholic drinks there are 8.5 thousand items (this list also includes exclusive brands). In June 2017, for the first time since its founding, the company made public estimates showing the store’s profit. At the end of the 2015-2016 financial year, it amounted to £352 thousand.
Personal life
Chichvarkin always carefully hid his personal life from prying eyes. It is reliably known that over the course of a couple of years former head Euroset was a caring father and loving husband. The businessman's wife's name is Antonina. It was she who gave the entrepreneur two children - son Yaroslav and daughter Marta.
In March 2016, rumors appeared on the Internet that the businessman had divorced, and in August this information was confirmed. New lover Evgenia became a girl named Tatyana. Together with her, the man flew to Jurmala the same year, where he introduced his companion to his celebrity friends - In August, the businessman, who left Russia for London in 2008, began raising funds in support of the election campaign. The money, according to the entrepreneur, will be used to open new headquarters in the regions and print leaflets. Among other things, Evgeniy published in
Evgeny Aleksandrovich Chichvarkin (September 10, 1974, Leningrad) - Russian entrepreneur. Since 2008 he has lived in the UK.
Childhood, youth
The father of the future millionaire was a civilian pilot, and his mother worked as an engineer-economist at the USSR Ministry of Foreign Trade. Chichvarkin indicates that his great-great-grandfather was a Moksha by nationality. As a child, he was nicknamed Chicha.
In 1996, Evgeniy graduated from the State Academy of Management with a degree in Economics of Motor Transport Management. During my studies, I traded in clothing markets (Cherkezon). 1996-1998 studied in graduate school State University management. True, I didn’t even come up with the topic of my dissertation.
Entrepreneurial activity
1997 - together with T. Artemyev, he organized the Euroset company, which later became the largest cellular retailer in Russia.
2008 - Chichvarkin and Artemyev signed an agreement on the sale of Euroset to ANN. In the same year, Chichvarkin left the post of head of the board of directors of Euroset.
December 2008 - Chichvarkin flew to London.
January 2009 – a criminal case was initiated against Chichvarkin.
2011 – the criminal case against E. Chichvarkin was dropped. However, the businessman is afraid to return to Russia.
2012 - together with T. Artemyev, he opens the wine business “Hedonism drinks Ltd” in London. Artemyev owns the company, and Chichvarkin is an investor. In the same year, Chichvarkin announced a possible return to his homeland in 5 years.
Criminal case
In 2009, Evgeny Chichvarkin was accused of kidnapping and extortion. This charge was related to the kidnapping in 2003 of the former Euroset forwarder A. Vlaskin, who was convicted of stealing phones. Soon Chichvarkin was put on the international wanted list.
In June 2009, a request for Chichvarkin's extradition was sent to the UK. Westminster Court issued an arrest warrant for the entrepreneur. But Chichvarkin was released on bail of £100 thousand. When the criminal case against Chichvarkin was dropped in Russia in 2011, the extradition case was closed in Britain.
Advice from Evgeny Chichvarkin for beginning entrepreneurs
Draw a portrait of your client. But don't imagine people who don't exist in nature. Try to understand what will be the key indicator for your future business that will help you jump higher than others.
Your service or product must be unique. Originality and uniqueness are an integral part of success. You constantly have to come up with something new or enhance what already exists.
A professional speaking brand can significantly help a business, while an idiotic one will only get in the way. If there is no money for branding, then write the name in black letters on a white background.
Use LJ, Twitter, Facebook to popularize your business. Chat on forums. When advertising your company, remember the possibilities of PR, flash mobs, viral campaigns and other highly intelligent, but relatively low-cost techniques.
In 2008, Chichvarkin headed one of the branches of the Right Cause party. He was responsible for the party's branding. In 2010, the millionaire announced that he was no longer involved in this project.
Evgeny Chichvarkin adheres to libertarian views.
At D. Medvedev’s inauguration, Chichvarkin presented the president with A. Rand’s book “Atlas Shrugged.” According to Evgeniy, this novel is the Bible of entrepreneurship. Fans of this book are A. Greenspan, R. Reagan and several other millionaires.
In 2010, E. Chichvarkin’s 60-year-old mother, Lyudmila, was found dead. According to forensic experts, she fell and hit her head on the edge of the table. However, Evgeny Chichvarkin is sure that it was murder.
In August 2010, Evgeniy Aleksandrovich participated in a rally that was held in front of the Russian embassy in London. This action was organized in defense of Article 31 of the Russian Constitution.
In 2011, Forbes included Evgeny Chichvarkin in its list of the 9 most unusual Russian businessmen.
Chichvarkin once admitted that many people take him for an idiot. He then added that although it was offensive, it was somewhat convenient.
Hobbies: exotic music and cross-country skiing.
Chichvarkin is married and has a son, Yaroslav, and a daughter, Marta.
Evgeny Chichvarkin maintains his own personal blog.
For more than nine years, Chichvarkin has been living away from his homeland - he has long settled in London, where he does business and builds his personal life, in which last years big changes have taken place. Evgeny Chichvarkin’s first wife Antonina, who in the past shared with him not only joyful holidays, but also bitter everyday life, some time ago acquired the status of “ex”.
Together with her and two children - son Yaroslav and daughter Marta, the businessman moved to London in 2016, and he did this not of his own free will, but in order to avoid punishment for extortion and kidnapping, which the Russian authorities accused him of.
In the photo - Evgeny Chichvarkin with his first wife and son
Chichvarkin married Antonina in his youth, and their family was always considered strong - Evgeniy was never seen having affairs or flirting with other women.
Evgeniy and Antonina
After the charges against him were dropped, the businessman still did not return to Russia, and not so long ago he divorced his first wife and married a second time - to Tatyana Fokina, the director of his wine store, opened by Eugene in the British capital several years ago.
In the photo - Chichvarkin and his second wife Tatyana Fokina
Chichvarkin’s second wife is significantly younger than her chosen one and his first wife; she comes from St. Petersburg, from where, after graduating from the philological faculty of St. Petersburg State University, she moved to London. She not only manages the affairs of her husband’s store, but also manages the Open University project, created by Mikhail Khodorkovsky, in which she managed to work even before moving to London.
Before meeting Chichvarkin, Tatyana Fokina spent some time interning at a PR agency, worked for a Russian businessman, and in 2010 she met Evgeniy, who was looking for a partner to create a store, which did not exist at that time.
In the photo - Taptyana Fokina
The businessman admitted that before he came up with the idea of creating a wine store, he wanted to open a bathhouse whose clients would be his compatriots, but he doubted that this business would be profitable.
According to Evgeny Chichvarkin’s wife, she was at first surprised by the concept of Evgeny’s store - huge bottles of very expensive wines were displayed on its shelves, including twenty-seven-liter Rioja worth fourteen thousand dollars.
Chichvarkin says that Tatyana did a lot for his company, and at first he paid attention to Fokina precisely because of her professional qualities. Tatyana says that she has always been close to the topics of art, food, and wine, so she created a store in which customers see not only a variety of wines, but also elements of modern art. Besides, it always sounds good music, which makes the wine selection process even more enjoyable.
During their joint work, Evgeniy could not resist the charm of his future wife, fell in love with her and proposed marriage. The businessman's friends are delighted with his young wife and speak of her as a sweet, intelligent girl.
So far, the newly-made Chichvarkin family is not planning to have children and continues to successfully develop their business - in 2017, Chichvarkin took 905th place in the ranking of the thousand richest residents of Great Britain, and his fortune was estimated at one hundred and twenty million pounds sterling per year.
Tatyana and her husband spend most of their working time in the office located above their liquor store, and before work they have time to play tennis. Their working day is full of negotiations, meetings, communication with clients, work with suppliers and company employees.
IN free time Evgeny and his wife attend cultural events, meet with friends, and like to go to the theater or exhibition.
Chichvarkin Evgeniy Aleksandrovich is a famous Russian businessman, former co-owner of Euroset. In 2011, Forbes magazine included him in the ranking of the most unusual entrepreneurs - eccentrics, eccentrics and extravaganzas.
Childhood and studies
Evgeny Chichvarkin, whose biography is described in this article, was born in Moscow in 1974. The boy's father worked first in civil and then in passenger aviation ( total experience- 40 years). Mom worked at the Ministry of Trade as an economist-engineer.
In 1991-1996, the young man traded in clothing markets. At the same time, he received his education at the Academy of Management, specializing in motor transport. In 1996, Evgeniy graduated from high school and entered graduate school, studying there for another two years. Chichvarkin did not defend his dissertation. In one of his interviews, he said that he didn’t even come up with a topic.
"Euroset"
In 1997, Evgeny Chichvarkin, together with his friend Timur Artemyev, opened the Euroset company. The idea of opening a mobile phone salon belonged to Timur. Evgeniy himself simply loved to sell, and the type of product did not matter to him. Subsequently, the media wrote about Artemyev and Chichvarkin as co-owners of Euroset. But information about the size of the share of each of them was not disclosed anywhere.
Extension
From the very beginning, Euroset focused on retail sales. Every year the company gradually expanded. In 1999, large-scale advertising began. But the company’s truly rapid growth occurred after the introduction of a new development strategy. The basis was the reduction in cell phone prices. By 2002 the number retail outlets increased to 11. Evgeny Chichvarkin opened more than 100 salons. Every year their number constantly grew. So in 2003, 117 stores opened, in 2004 there were already more than 800.
From 2001 to 2004, Euroset entered into contracts with vendors and officially became a partner of such brands as Pantek, Sagem, Philips, Sony Ericsson, Siemens, Samsung, Motorola and "LG." By working directly with manufacturers and obtaining the most favorable terms during negotiations, the company continues to promote a low-price strategy.
In 2003, Evgeny Chichvarkin became seriously involved in the development of regions. This has led to improved economic performance and business growth in Russian cities. The national retailer in the regional market ensured not only the growth of the base of mobile operators and interest in cellular communications, but also contributed to the emergence of real competition and increased professionalism of others retail chains and the creation of jobs.
A new round of activity
At the beginning of 2004, Euroset launched DECT phones, MP3 players and cameras. In October it was issued in the amount of 1 billion rubles. In the same year, branches of the company appeared in Kazakhstan and Ukraine. The company's thousandth anniversary salon was opened in Grozny on December 7, 2004.
The main activities of Euroset are: retail trade in cellular and personal audio, digital cameras and accessories. The company also connected to telecom operators and provided information Services. The number of employees of the company reached 30 thousand. About 45 million people visited Euroset salons every month. In February 2004, Evgeny Chichvarkin received the Person of the Year award in the Retail Business Director category. Since 2005, Euroset began to cooperate with Nokia.
Scandal
Also in 2005, the company acquired the Voronezh Chain of Salons and Techmarket. This allowed Euroset to become the largest retail company in its segment. It was then that a scandal occurred involving a batch of smuggled phones detained at customs. Law enforcement agencies became interested in Euroset. Evgeny Chichvarkin told the media that in this way they are trying to “crush” his company, and all accusations of smuggling are a complete lie. In August 2006, law enforcement agencies closed the case for lack of evidence of a crime.
New plans
In 2006, the number of stores reached 3150. And a year later, this figure increased to 5156. Communication shops were represented in 12 countries: Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Lithuania, Latvia, Belarus, Estonia, Russia, Moldova, Ukraine. Naturally, the company's immediate plans included an IPO. Chichvarkin also planned to open a hypermarket.
In 2007, many media outlets reported on Euroset’s intention to acquire own bank and enter the relevant market. In order to stand out among competitors, Chichvarkin even came up with the name “Ebank”. Most journalists noted Evgeniy's originality.
Searches
In March 2007, Chichvarkin’s name was often mentioned in the press in connection with the arrest of Dmitry Sidorov, who headed the Iled M company. He was suspected of tax evasion, and on a large scale. In 2004-2005, Iled M supplied mobile phones and accessories to Euroset. Just during that period, Chichvarkin was a co-founder of the company, and then unexpectedly left it.
In August of the same year, employees of the Investigative Committee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs conducted searches in the apartments of Euroset employees. Meanwhile, information in the media was ambiguous. Some wrote that the searches were related to a 2005 smuggling case. Others stated that Chichvarkin was involved in Iled M. A version of a marketing ploy was also not excluded when, after the searches, the company announced the suspension of supplies of cell phones to its stores, thereby stimulating demand for the products.
Nevertheless, most experts adhered to the version that the searches were the security forces’ response to Yevgeny’s actions. After all, Chichvarkin was in confrontation with the structures of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They came to this conclusion after analyzing information from the Kommersant newspaper, which published an article about searches at Euroset. Also, back in March 2006, Directorate “K” of the Ministry of Internal Affairs confiscated a batch of Motorola phones from the company. Euroset filed a lawsuit for illegal seizure and won. Part of the shipment was returned, and the other was destroyed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs “under the guise of harmful goods.”
Sale of the company
In 2008, Vedomosti published information about negotiations between MTS and Euroset regarding the sale of the latter. At the same time, the publication provided information on the distribution of shares in the company. Artemyev and Chichvarkin owned 50% of the shares. Vedomosti also asked the co-owners of Euroset to comment on the information about the likely sale. Both said this was not true.
In December 2008, Chichvarkin sold Euroset to VimpelCom (Beeline) and Alexander Mamut in a ratio of 49.9 and 50.1%, respectively. Taking into account the debt ($850 million), the transaction cost was $1.25 billion, and without taking into account it was about $400 million.
Criminal case
After the sale of the company, Evgeny Chichvarkin and his wife Antonina left Russia for London. And already in January 2009, a case was opened against the businessman, arresting him in absentia. In March, Evgeniy was put on the international wanted list. Thanks to competent work his lawyers, Chichvarkin managed to stop the criminal prosecution. In 2011 investigative committee The Russian Federation closed his case and stopped the international search. Evgeny Chichvarkin and his wife still live in London and have no plans to return.
Personal life
Many media consider his image to be quite unusual for a serious businessman. In one of his interviews, Evgeniy said that people often mistake him for an idiot. On the one hand, the entrepreneur was offended, but there were situations when it was even convenient. In 2007, a publication was published, in the writing of which Evgeny Chichvarkin took part. The book was called "If you are sent 99 times out of 100." The genre of the publication is “success story”. In it, the businessman described in detail his biography and the history of the formation of Euroset. Critics said that the figure of Eugene in the book “turned out to be not very sympathetic, so the degree of reliability of what is presented is quite high.”
Despite his large fortune ($3 billion), the businessman does not consider himself rich. Money for him is just an opportunity. The entrepreneur is married and very happily married. Evgenia Chichvarkin's wife is a housewife. Together with her husband, she is raising two children: daughter Marta and son Yaroslav.
Evgeny Chichvarkin- Russian entrepreneur. Co-founder and former co-owner of the Euroset network of cellular communication stores.
Evgeny Chichvarkin
Occupation: businessman, politician
Date of birth: September 10, 1974
Place of Birth:
Leningrad, USSR
Country Russia
Evgeniy Aleksandrovich Chichvarkin(September 10, 1974, Leningrad) - Russian entrepreneur. Co-founder and former co-owner of the Euroset network of cellular communication stores. Since the end of 2008 he has lived in the UK, where he has a business. For some time he was the leader of the Moscow branch of the opposition party “Union of Right Forces”.
In October 2011, Evgeny Chichvarkin was noted by Anastasia Zhokhova, editor of the Russian version of Forbes magazine, as one of the 9 most unusual Russian businessmen - madcaps, eccentrics and eccentrics.
Evgeny Chichvarkin born September 10, 1974. By his own admission, he was “physically born” in Leningrad. Most sources indicate Moscow as the city of birth (direct quote from Chichvarkin: “Formally, I was born in Leningrad, but registered in Moscow (my mother is a Leningrader, my father is a Muscovite)”). His father worked as a civilian pilot, and his mother worked as an engineer-economist at the USSR Ministry of Foreign Trade (later at the Ministry of Industry and Trade). Talking about ethnic roots, Chichvarkin indicated that his great-great-grandfather was Moksha.
After graduating from Moscow school No. 28 in 1991, Chichvarkin entered the State Academy of Management, from which he graduated in 1996, receiving a diploma in “Economics of Motor Transport Management.” At the same time, he was engaged in trading in clothing markets.
From 1996 to 1998 he studied at the academy's graduate school.
Management of the Euroset company
On April 2, 1997, together with his friend Timur Artemyev, he created the Euroset company, which later became the largest Russian cellular retailer.
September 2, 2008 employees law enforcement conducted a search in the central office of the Euroset company, which was related to the investigation into the kidnapping of former Euroset freight forwarder Andrei Vlaskin in 2003, according to Chichvarkin’s defense, who was convicted of theft by the company’s security service cell phones. On September 22, 2008, together with Timur Artemyev, he signed an agreement on the sale of 100% of the Euroset company to the investment company ANN, headed by entrepreneur Alexander Mamut.[ On October 24, 50% minus one share of the Euroset company was acquired from the ANN company by Vympel-Communications . The sale transaction was completed on February 3, 2011.
In 2008, he came out in support of Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev.
On November 16, 2008, Chichvarkin headed the still unregistered Moscow city branch of the Right Cause party. He was also put in charge of the party's branding.
On November 20, 2008, it became known that Chichvarkin left the post of chairman of the board of directors of Euroset.
Emigration
Before he left the country, he lived on Rublyovka in Zhukovka. On December 22, 2008, I flew to London. In January 2009, the Investigative Committee under the Prosecutor's Office Russian Federation opened a criminal case against Chichvarkin.
On March 2, 2010, he announced that he was asking to no longer be associated with the Right Cause party, since it was not possible to work in the project from abroad.
On April 3, 2010, Chichvarkin’s 60-year-old mother, Lyudmila Chichvarkina, was found dead at home. According to the preliminary conclusion of forensic experts, Chichvarkina fell and hit her temple on the edge of the table, but Evgeny Chichvarkin believes that it was murder.
On May 11, 2010, on his blog in the Snob project, he published an appeal to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, in which he again accused the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs of intimidation and extorting money from him for the sale of the Euroset company in 2008, and also accused the penitentiary system of maintaining prisoners in inhumane conditions- the former head of the Euroset security service, Boris Levin, was diagnosed with hepatitis C during his imprisonment in 2008.
On May 30, 2010, during the Moscow Tea Party rally, held by the Libertarian Party of Russia, a telephone direct line was organized with Chichvarkin, during which he supported the action in defense of a free economy.
On August 31, 2010, Chichvarkin took part in a rally in defense of Article 31 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in front of the building Russian embassy in London.
In January 2011, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation dropped the criminal case against Chichvarkin. However, Chichvarkin said he was afraid to return to Russia due to the possibility of new persecution.
Since March 2012, together with his friend Timur Artemyev, they opened the wine business “Hedonism Drinks Ltd” in London, where Timur is the owner of the company, and Chichvarkin is the main investor.
At the end of 2012, he stated that he might return to Russia “in 5-6 years”; but only if the current regime is changed.
In April 2016, he announced plans to engage in positioning and branding of the Open Russia organization.
Criminal prosecution
On January 14, 2009, the investigation issued a decision to bring Evgeny Chichvarkin as a defendant. He was charged with Part 3 of Article 126 (kidnapping) and paragraphs “a”, “b” of Part 3 of Article 163 (extortion) of the Criminal Code. At the end of December and beginning of January, Chichvarkin was sent several times summonses for questioning, but since the investigation was unable to contact him, he was accused in absentia. After this, he was put on the federal wanted list.
On January 28, 2009, the Basmanny District Court of Moscow authorized the arrest of Chichvarkin in absentia. On March 2, the judicial panel of the Moscow City Court decided to leave the decision of the Basmanny Court unchanged, and the cassation complaints of the lawyers - without satisfaction[.
On March 12, Chichvarkin was put on the international wanted list.
June 17, 2009 General Prosecutor's Office sent a request to the UK to extradite Chichvarkin. On August 27, Westminster Magistrates' Court issued an arrest warrant requiring him to appear in court. On September 7, Chichvarkin was forcibly brought to court, but on the same day he was released on bail in the amount of 100,000 pounds sterling.
On September 22, extradition hearings were held, the judge scheduled a trial on the merits for December 1, Chichvarkin was again released on the previously posted bail of 100,000 pounds sterling, and his documents entitling him to travel abroad were confiscated.
On 1 December, Westminster Magistrates' Court adjourned the extradition hearing to 2 August 2010, granting the defense's request for additional time for translation from Russian into English. large quantity documents on the case, as well as preparing a list of witnesses whom the lawyers intend to call to court.
On August 2, 2010, Westminster Magistrates' Court adjourned the hearing on Chichvarkin's extradition case to September 13. On September 13, Westminster Magistrates' Court scheduled the main hearing in the Chichvarkin extradition case for March 21, 2011.
On January 24, 2011, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation dropped the criminal case against Chichvarkin, on January 26, the international search for him was stopped, and on February 17, the Westminster Magistrates Court closed the extradition case.
Views
Adheres to libertarian economic and political views. At Dmitry Medvedev’s inauguration, Evgeny gave him Ayn Rand’s novel “Atlas Shrugged.” In his blog in 2008 he wrote about this novel:
Ayn Rand "Atlas Shrugged" I would like to say something special about this book. This is truly the Bible of entrepreneurship. It took 12 years to write by our former compatriot Alisa Rosenbaum and was published in 1957. I think this is the most powerful work, both in its essence and in its meaning, written in the 20th century. Despite the fact that the novel is really very long, it is in constant demand. Over all these years, more than 5 million copies have been sold and more than 100 thousand copies are still sold per year. It is impossible to tell briefly, but the main idea is that the capitalist system, in essence, is not only a system of the highest justice, but also the highest morality. The novel describes an epic fantasy of how social populists came to power in the United States, leading the country into chaos, famine and civil war. The abdication of responsibility, lower and lower in the management structure, is described in a very naturalistic manner. railway, from the boss to the drunk driver, which leads to a terrible tragedy in the tunnel. Very similar to Russian regions during the period of decomposition Soviet system. Ayn Rand took 5 years to write John Galt's final speech. It reflects the concept of rational egoism and individualism.
Ayn Rand's fans include Alan Greenspan and Ronald Reagan. And among several million more people - people with incomes of more than a million dollars in the United States - this book is more popular than the Bible. I highly recommend reading this brilliant work. In Euroset this book can also be read during the working day.