Why is industrial production not developing in Russia? Restaurateur Elashvili - RBC: “Sbarro no longer meets market requirements Does not meet modern requirements

Modern Readers Should Put More Effort As readers of the Bible living in the 21st century, it will always be harder than the original readers because we haven't read Greek or Biblical Hebrew since childhood, so we have to

Under construction near the border with Lithuania nuclear power station(BelNPP) in Astravets does not meet modern safety requirements, say Lithuanian specialists who have read the NPP stress test report and submitted their comments to the international group.

The Lithuanian State Nuclear Energy Inspectorate (VATESI) reported that Lithuania had formulated more than 100 comments and a question on the stability of nuclear power plants in extreme situations. Lithuania's most important question about choosing a site for the construction of the station was not considered in the report, and therefore it and a number of other questions remain unanswered, the report says.

« In addition to the questions raised earlier by Lithuania, to which Belarus has not yet given answers, familiarization with the stress test report showed that the project of the Belarusian nuclear power plant also has shortcomings in this area, which must be eliminated before the start-up of the first reactor", - the head of the working group and the deputy head of VATESI for nuclear safety notes in the message Sigitas Shlyapavichyus.

The working group argues that it lacks a justification for the stability of the nuclear power plant in the event of a crash of a heavy commercial aircraft, as well as ensuring the independence of the control system in the event of severe accidents.

In addition, Lithuania has doubts about the analysis of the stability of the project in the event of an extreme earthquake, because it is based on studies in 1997. possible consequences from forest fires in nearby forests and other dangers, including possible flooding after an earthquake, which could occur if three artificial reservoirs on the Neris River break through.

The remarks and questions formulated by the Lithuanian institutions will be submitted by January 25 to the European Commission and the international working group of experts established by the European Nuclear Safety Regulatory Organizations Group (ENSREG).

In Lithuania, VATESI, the Energy Institute, VAE SPB, the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (INPP), the Lithuanian Geological Service, the country’s Hydrometeorological Service, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Energy, and the Nuclear Waste Management Agency are participating in the consideration of the BelNPP stress test report. Stress tests of NPPs in 2016 were carried out by a subsidiary of the general contractor ROSATOM - Atomprojekt.

Representatives of the Lithuanian government have already stated that the tests do not answer all questions and require tests to be carried out in accordance with the NPP methodology. Nuclear power plant is being built near the border with Lithuania, just 50 km from Vilnius. Lithuania blocks the import of electricity generated at the BelNPP and thus seeks to complicate the implementation of the project.

Why is industrial production not developing in Russia?

In 2008, my co-author, Doctor of Economics, and I Kashin V.A. The journal "Taxes and Taxation" published an article "Once again about ways to improve the tax system in Russia", which shows that without a radical change in tax policy, the economic development of Russia is impossible. All the provisions of our article are even more relevant today.

Today, industrial production in Russia is coming to naught. According to Rosstat, by 2016, compared to 1990, the volume of production in physical units of most types of industrial products was catastrophically reduced, including by 94.8%, that is, the production of metal-cutting machine tools fell to 5.2%, tractors - to 3%; excavators - 6.3%; bulldozers - 3.5%; grain harvesters - 9.8%; forging and pressing machines - 8.9%; trucks - 20%; trolleybuses - 8.1%; motorcycles - 1.7%; woolen fabrics - 2.3%; cotton fabrics - 20.1%; production of linen fabrics - 5.8%; leather shoes - 10.2%; knitwear - up to 13.8%, etc.

There is very little left before the complete cessation of production.

There are several reasons. But the main reason is the inefficient tax system.

Today, in the tax policy pursued in our country, to the detriment of economic and social development, two main trends in taxation remain in force: the concentration of tax collections in the sphere of material production and the unfair distribution of the total tax burden between recipients of low and high incomes. In this regard, the tax authorities of the Russian Federation are noticeably departing from the Western model of taxation, which has a pronounced social character and maintains an emphasis on increased taxation of "unearned" and "non-productive" income.

Based on world experience and taking into account the practice of the fiscal policy of recent years in Russia, we can conclude that without a sharp and decisive turn in the real distribution of the tax burden between payers in the production sector and the distribution of newly produced value (not limited to simply reducing tax rates some taxes) the country has no chance to compete in the world market.

Our tax system does not meet modern requirements. Today it performs only a fiscal function. And that is unsatisfactory: a significant part of the economy is in the "shadow". And the Russian tax system performs distributive, stimulating and social function: does not contribute to the growth of production, the growth of welfare and the reduction of social stratification of the population.

Consider the problem of irrational distribution of the tax burden. The severity of the tax burden for different economic agents in our country varies significantly, which cannot be considered fair and appropriate.

Let's estimate the tax burden on typical taxpayers: employees, small retailers, rentiers, large entrepreneurs ("oligarchs").
The salary of an employee is "burdened" by three types of taxes: personal income tax – the rate is 13%, the unified social tax - the rate for earnings in the lowest category - 30% and VAT - 18%. Total all deductions and accruals for wages make up about two-thirds of their earnings.

Since we are talking about people living "on a salary", it is quite reasonable to assume that they spend their income on the purchase of consumer goods. Then they are once again subject to VAT (at rates of 10% or 18%), and if they purchase excisable goods (alcoholic beverages, tobacco, beer, etc.) and imports, then more excises and customs duties must be added.

In addition, if the employee has any taxable property, then he will also pay for a car, apartment, cottage, etc.

According to the most conservative estimates, the amount of taxes collected by the state and the amount of earned income received on hand are approximately equal.

It turns out that half the time an employee works for the state, and half for himself.

Another economic agent is a small retailer who lives on the resale of goods purchased at the wholesale market.

If such a merchant keeps his annual income within 150 million rubles. , then he can apply the so-called simplified taxation system, in which he must pay either 6% of turnover or 15% of net income.

At the same time, official taxable turnovers and incomes are significantly reduced when selling unrecorded counterfeit and contraband, the share of which can be quite large.

The highest level of counterfeiting occurs in the field of consumer goods, including food, textiles, household chemicals, children's goods, etc. In these sectors, its share often exceeds 50% or more.

In addition, when applying the simplified system, the trader is released from all obligations not only to pay income tax, property tax and VAT, but also from keeping records, submitting declarations, etc.

The third case is a rentier who profitably invested his capital and lives on the income from it. If he keeps all his money in bank accounts and the rate of interest he receives does not exceed the levels set central bank RF (15% in 2017), it does not pay taxes at all. If he holds his capital in securities, then he must pay only a tax on dividends in the amount of 13%.

And finally, the fourth case: a large entrepreneur who received an enterprise in the course of implementing privatization schemes and passed the stage of accumulating earned income (or profits), from which all other citizens paid the full amount of the relevant taxes.

In order to put "live money" in his pocket, he can transfer funds in various ways to the banks of some offshore center, where no taxes will be withheld from him. If he prefers to receive his income in the form of dividends, he will have to pay a tax on dividends of 13%. And if this oligarch organizes the receipt of such dividends on the account of his company in another country, then you can find options when the amount of tax withheld in Russia does not exceed 5%.

And finally, if such an oligarch and members of his family take up the practice of purchasing goods in European countries and then importing them into Russia, then they are exempt from paying VAT (in both countries) and from taxation customs duties(subject to certain restrictions).

All listed economic agents are businessmen. They are engaged in business and defend its interests. At the same time, “business interests” do not always mean the same thing.

Thus, low-paid employees production area receive about 40% of the total income and 60% pay the state in the form of taxes. And those who participate in the real production process to a minimal extent, but have the opportunity to receive high incomes, receive 87% of these incomes in their hands, and pay 13% in the form of taxes.

These examples show that the low average level of taxation in the Russian Federation does not mean anything. He simply covers up the fact that, in full accordance with the taxation system adopted in Russia, taxes are paid not by those who have large incomes, but by those who barely earn to cover their economic costs of supporting themselves and their families. And this is laid down directly in the tax legislation at the very beginning of the reforms.

In addition, it follows from the above that taxpayers who bear a higher share of the tax burden will continue to strive to circumvent tax laws (with a natural increase in the number and intensity of tax disputes). And since all the subjects of economic activity in the sphere of material production belong to the number of these “offended” taxpayers, they cannot be expected to increase the rate of economic growth (which the government hopes for) until the general tax policy of the state is changed accordingly.

What and how to do is detailed in my posts on my blog on Ekho Moskvy, for example, and, as well as in the works of the Modernization EAC (see www.modern.rf.ru, section "Our Works").

To be continued.

If your income in percentage terms is above the key rate + 5%, you must pay tax on the deposit of individuals. In 2017 (Q1), the key rate remains at 10%. This means that the tax-free deposit rate in 2017 is 15%.

Those who did not want to understand what was happening went against the company. Perhaps they thought that if they wrote about us and we got in trouble, then this would affect the company. However, they did not take into account one thing: if we are forced to close points, then the company will not increase money. If we had free funds, would we create such difficulties for ourselves? Certainly not, because the company from the moment of its foundation has always paid the labor of its employees in a timely manner. But if problems appear on the market, then everyone suffers: both business and individuals. It's like in chess - a lot depends on one move.

Our omission is that we delayed the closing of low-margin outlets for a long time. It was worth acting more decisively and starting network optimization back in June-July 2015. It was necessary to reduce about 30% of the staff. Business is business, but you have to be human. Understanding the current situation on the labor market, we tried not to fire people, transferring them to our other institutions. Many employees who then opposed the company are still looking for work. But seeing that the situation with payments had stabilized, they announced their readiness to return.

Merab Elashvili

- The trade union of workers Sbarro reported that the debt for each of the 70 members of the union was about 150 thousand rubles.

- This is not entirely true, the amount of debt was different. Some had a debt of about 3,000 rubles, while others reached up to 150,000 rubles. The total debt to trade union members amounted to 4.5 million rubles.

— But those who owed money to Sbarro, were there more?

— Of course, more. 70 people are those who joined the trade union.

How much did the company owe employees in general?

- In December - about 15 million rubles, but we partially paid in November. Today we pay the current salary and continue to pay off the resulting debts. We expect that in the next two months all debts will be paid.

- Employees reported that they employment contracts were issued to third-party companies and that part of the salary was " inenvelopes, right?

— Outsourcing is a common practice for chain restaurant business. We have worked directly with recruiting companies, who were paid the full amount under the contract, and those in turn paid salaries to the staff. But how these companies registered employees - I, of course, cannot know this.

They did us a favor by providing staff. We started working actively with such companies about two years ago, when all this economic turbulence began in the country. AT better times, of course, they tried to register employees in the company's staff, forming a sense of devotion and loyalty to the brand. For staff members we tried to create special conditions and paid the money even when faced with difficulties. We never ignored the staff, it's just that the strike situation was a certain provocation and completely out of control.

Why do you think this is a provocation?

- Now on the market, if not every second, then every third company has a situation similar to ours. But why did Sbarro employees take to the streets? Who did they follow? Certainly someone pushed them to this. At the end of the year, we invited employees and union representatives to meet and sit down at the negotiating table. They set conditions: the company must hire all outsourced employees and pay them the debt within a week. We could not accept their proposal, because this would entail new additional costs. From our point of view, the union acted categorically and harshly, but then was able to see the situation through the eyes of the company. We managed to reach an agreement only in February 2016.

“G.M.R. Planet of hospitality»

Restaurant holding "G.M.R. Hospitality Planet" was founded in 1997. The abbreviation in its name comes from the first letters of the names of the co-owners: Merab Elashvili, his brother George Elashvili and brother-in-law Roman Shamilashvili. Until 1997, the partners were engaged in the distribution of European goods.

Today, the holding operates 88 Sbarro restaurants, of which it owns 35, and the rest are developed through sub-franchising. The portfolio also includes Yolki-Palki, Oriental Bazaar, Viaggio and Little Japan restaurants, YamKee noodle shops and Cafesto cafe. In total, the networks have 157 points, including franchise ones.

The holding's revenue fell in 2015 compared to 2014by 27%, up to 5.5 billion rubles. The company does not disclose profit and total debt load.

“In one day, all our outlets in Mega were closed

— What is financial position holding as a whole?

- Turnover in 2014 amounted to 7 billion rubles, in 2015 - 5.5 billion rubles. The company has been developing all the time through reinvestment and attracted bank funds. In mid-2014, with the onset of the economic crisis in the country, some banks refused to extend our credit line, we were forced to return Money. At the same time, almost all banks raised rates from 10-11% to 19-25%. And it took us a lot of effort and energy to convince them that the restaurant business model cannot afford this. We've had a cash gap. Only at the end of 2015 did we manage to settle the interest. The food embargo, currency risks, the decline in the solvency of the population - in general, our checks fell by 20-30% - and a decrease in the traffic of shopping centers also affected.

We started optimizing the business: reducing staff in the office, negotiating with shopping centers across the country. Someone agreed to pay rent in rubles, someone did not. For example, the management of "Mega" took a tough stance, rejected any proposed compromise solutions. And in one day, all our points in Mega were closed in almost all cities of Russia, the operating restaurants in which we invested more than $20 million were destroyed. More than 500 people were left without work in an instant. Many were newcomers, and for them the loss of a job was a real tragedy, a catastrophe.

— What other currency payments did you have?apart from rent? Imported products?

“We ourselves did not import large volumes of products, but we cooperated with intermediaries who bought for us flour and dairy products, pasta, cheeses in Portugal, Italy and other countries. Before the embargo, about 70% of production came from EU countries. Of course, a larger percentage of purchases was intended for the Sbarro chain of Italian cafes.

With the advent of the food embargo, it turned out like this: what cost us 30 rubles yesterday turned into 60 rubles. This is due to reduced competition [of food suppliers] on Russian market and speculative games. So whether you like it or not, prices need to be raised, but in a year and a half we did it by only 10-12%. We cannot pass all the costs on to our visitors. In this case, the guests will simply stop coming to us.

At some point, the cost of dishes has already begun to amount to about 50% of the company's turnover. The share of expenses for rent and staff has also been constantly growing, because we have to pay regardless of whether the guests came to the restaurant. In addition to these main items of expenditure, there are others. So gradually, little by little, we began to get into debt on rent, food suppliers and so on.

We don't disclose.

— Have you tried to reduce dependence on imported ingredients?

— We met with our American partners who own the Sbarro brand. They outlined the problems that they faced due to the imposed sanctions against Russia. They offered possible options for replacing existing ingredients, the cost of which has increased dramatically. We cannot just make changes to the recipe without coordinating with the American partner. Unfortunately, our proposals remained unanswered, bureaucratic delays began.

Merab Elashvili (Photo: Alena Kondyurina for RBC)

Plus our franchisees [out of 88 Sbarro pizzerias in Russia G.M.R. Planet of Hospitality only 54 are owned, the rest are sub-franchised] turned to us for help in adapting the menu to reduce the “food cost”, for providing marketing support and creating a new interior, and we could not help them in any way. We ourselves have become hostages of the situation.

Any brand gradually becomes obsolete, new bright, dynamic players appear. Unfortunately, today's Sbarro franchise model no longer meets modern market requirements and does not justify the expectations placed on it. And the founder of the brand did not make any changes. We have come a long way with an American corporation, but franchising is primarily a partnership business. We hoped that the partners would hear us, but since this did not happen, we began to prepare for the termination of the contract.

— What is the procedure for withdrawing from the concession agreement? Do you need to pay a penalty?

- I can not tell you - the terms of the contract are confidential.

— Will you offer American partners to buy Sbarro outlets?

- Not. We plan to use part of the premises with successful locations for the development of our own concepts. We have already informed many of our landlords that we will cease management of this brand in the near future.

— What will happen to Sbarro sub-franchisees?

— American Sbarro will take over the management of the franchisee. Until then, we will continue to work as usual. We want to maintain partnership relations with all franchisees, because many of them are also franchisees of our other concepts.

— During the crisis of 2008, there was a surge of interest in franchising, because it is an inexpensive way to start your own business. Is there an increase in interest now?

“These are very different crises. If the first was purely economic, today we are also witnessing a geopolitical confrontation. They continue to be interested in the franchise, as in 2008, but today they are looking at formats for small investments. We are considering the possibility of restarting the franchise program, perhaps we will reduce the cost of the lump-sum fee and royalties, and change the offer.

Merab Elashvili

Born in 1974 in the village of Kulashi in Georgia in the family of one of the leaders of the Georgian Jewish community. At the age of 19, he came to “conquer” Moscow, where, together with his brother Georgy Elashvili and brother-in-law Roman Shamilashvili, he founded the GMR company, which was engaged in the distribution of goods from well-known European manufacturers, in particular chocolate eggs"Kinder Surprise". Then he began to conduct real estate transactions. In 1997, he convinced American partners to give him a master franchise to open Sbarro pizzerias in Russia. Since 2007, he has been President of G.M.R. Hospitality Planet.

In September 2008, on the eve of the Jewish New Year, he opened a Sephardic synagogue with his relatives in the Triumph Palace residential complex in the north of Moscow. In April 2016, Elashvili became the hero of the gossip column, arranging the wedding of Anna's eldest daughter in Tel Aviv. The celebration was attended by 2 thousand guests, who were entertained by Nikolai Baskov, Soso Pavliashvili and American rapper Ryan Leslie. A year before, Merab's brother and business partner, Georgy, celebrated his son's wedding at the Moscow Manege, where he invited more than 1,500 guests.

“Theft began to reach 10-12% of turnover»

— What is your anti-crisis plan for the near future?

- First of all, we refuse inefficient sites. Since our foundation, we have opened more than 500 outlets, but during periods of economic crises, many were forced to abandon. Since 2014, the company has been rotating outlets. Now, along with franchised restaurants, more than 150 restaurants are open, about 20 more are temporarily closed, because we are negotiating leases. If we do not agree, then we will not open, of course. In this situation, we are not fighting for quantity. Any point should be a business and bring money. No business? Everything is closed.

We have built a different supply chain. Until 2015, we had a single supplier. His effectiveness ceased to suit us, and we ended the relationship. Today we cooperate with different suppliers, constantly working on the efficiency of the services provided.

We continue to carry out frequent checks in restaurants to prevent internal theft. When there were delays in payments, large-scale theft began. Generally in restaurant business this is not uncommon, but recently losses have begun to reach 10-12% of the restaurant's turnover. For example, the industry average is no more than 2%.

And, of course, we introduce new dishes, optimize the cost, conduct various marketing promotions to attract visitors.

— What concepts are you planning to develop?

— We have brands of federal importance: Middle Eastern cuisine restaurants Vostochny Bazaar and Russian home cooking Yolki-Palki. We quickly adapted technologies, taking into account the sanctions and the need for import substitution, and business is now stable in these networks. There are popular YamKee noodles. This brand, due to its small format, investment and quick payback Franchisees are especially interested now. Or maybe it will be a completely different concept.

How are consumers behaving?

“The consumer today has taken a more conservative position and treats new products with caution. If a person has free 200 rubles, he will come for the familiar taste that he is used to receiving. Today, the Russian fast food market is dominated by three key products: chicken, hamburger and pizza. But this does not mean that we do not have other interesting concepts, such as potatoes, pan-Asian cuisine, pancakes, dumplings, and so on.

Are the changes you've implemented already having an impact?

— Yes, we see an increase in traffic. For checks, the increase is approximately 13%, for restaurant revenue it is already 22% compared to the fourth quarter of 2015. The situation is leveling out. Hopefully, in July we will come out in plus. At the same time, we continue to pay off debts. At the same time, we are negotiating with various investment funds and private investors on the sale of shares.

— “G.M.R. Hospitality Planet is a fully family-owned company. Are you sorry to let "outsiders" in?

— What share are you ready to sell and how much do you estimate the value of the holding?

— There are various discussions. We don’t know where we will end up, but the company needs new investments. And we will do everything to make her feel confident.

- And if you don’t agree, will you be able to develop normally and pay off your debts?

— In the coming year, we do not plan to open our own restaurants. It is necessary to level the situation, rebuild the company, optimize the business and continue to pay off the debt. At the same time, since the beginning of 2016, we have opened eight franchised establishments, and by the end of the year we are planning about five more in Kursk and the Irkutsk region. We are also negotiating with partners from Moscow and Yaroslavl. Franchisees from Kazakhstan show great interest in our concepts.

It is wrong to say that tomorrow we will be able to pay off all debts at once, but the company is now coping with its obligations. The turning point will be the end of 2016. If some force majeure does not happen tomorrow, we will overcome all difficulties.