INTERNATIONAL CLUBS : EDHEC ALUMNI back in Russia

After years of virtual absence from Russia, Edhec Alumni has relaunched its local network. Out of the 40 or so Edhec people who live and work in Moscow, around a dozen alumni turned up at Monks and Nuns, one of the Belgian bars in the Russian capital (well, what did you expect?) on July 5 at the invitation of Alain Godet (GE 1992 and member of the Edhec Alumni committee), who took advantage of a business trip there to get the club off the ground. The meeting was mainly designed to enable Edhec people to get to know each other, so they can call on one another in case of difficulty or if they have any questions about the Russian market which remains difficult, even though it’s becoming more structured.

Among those present, there were several Edhec Resource people with the experience essential for anyone going to Russia for professional reasons: Agnès Guyon-Nikitsky (GE 1993), who has been living in Russia since 1993 and is deputy Sales Director for one of the main Russian insurance companies, Sébastien Iwanski (Espeme 2010), in charge of the French-speaking market for Intermark Savills, a company specialising in flat rentals for expatriates, Orlin Efremov (MBA 2001), chairman of the SME committee for the Association of European Businesses in the Russian Federation, and Jean-Michel Brunie (GE 1998), General Manager of the Russian branch of the Swiss bank, UBP. A lot of business cards changed hands between the people there, most of whom had never met beforehand. After this first contact, the Russia club is ready to take off again with regular themed or informal meetings. The Russian market is growing rapidly and the Edhec network needs to become a real resource to follow developments closely…

Martial Sekely (GE 1991) CEO of Lactalis Group and our ambassador in Russia is looking for an alumni to help him boost the club. If you are interested, please contact him or send an email to marina.robert@edhec.edu