Interview with Maxim, creator of the „Big Maks“ brand

 

Hi Maxim. Tell us a few words about yourself.

In short, a cheerful and determined person.

What and when brought you into the hookah industry?

I think it was my love for hookah smoking. I tried hookah for the first time back in 2006, but connected my activity with hookah industry only in 2015.

What did you do, where did you work before the hookah industry?

When I was a student I worked in Adidas, after graduation I got a job in an international transportation company, where I gained great experience in import/export and international transportation.

How did the idea of creating your own brand come about?

Since university, I had been thinking about my own business, writing various business plans and collecting seed money. The idea of opening my own business came when I encountered real problems with the coal on the Russian market, it was of poor quality. I realised that I needed to act!

 Why did you decide to call the brand BigMaks? Clearly Maks came from the name Maxim. But what made you decide to add the epithet Big to your own name? 

I thought about the name for a long time, I didn’t want it to have the word COCO as most bong coal manufacturers do. A friend suggested BigMaks.

At first I did not like it, it seemed unserious. But after a while I remembered the proverb: „You call the ship what you name it, it will float“.

What were the difficulties in the beginning?

At the start there were many difficulties, in principle the same as when starting any other business. The most important task was to find a decent charcoal factory and not go bankrupt, because the initial capital was only 300,000 rubles.

As I know, the first product was charcoal, what influenced to create hookahs, bowls and flasks?

When we started selling more charcoal than a factory in Indonesia could produce, we had a lot of free time and something to think about. At first we took care of the flasks, because the niche was almost free, and then we started to produce hookahs under our own brand. Half a year ago we opened our own ceramic panel factory where we produced our first waterpipe bowl model called KING.

 

 

I also want to tell you about another company I set up two years ago. It is called I-TEA.
A couple of years ago I caught myself that I like tea no less than I like waterpipes. And within two weeks I was in China, choosing suppliers. Today it is a fairly large wholesale company with a range of more than 400 kinds of tea and a large list of tea utensils.
Now we are starting to make custom-made ceramic tableware in our production facility.

What makes your brand stand out from other brands?

We are a large wholesale company, which produces under its brand quite a large list of hookah products. In short, BigMaks can be described as: high service and best quality for reasonable prices! Today we import our products into 25 countries and this is just the beginning.

What are your goals/plans for the coming years?

Goal 1 – reach a bowl production volume of 40.000 bowls per month.

Goal 2 – open a warehouse in Europe.

Goal 3 – increase the number of countries where the BigMaks brand will be popular.

What difficulties did you face during the pandemic?

In my opinion, the pandemic was only good for the hookah industry. Sales increased exactly twofold. People were quarantined and they first bought up all the dumbbells and then the hookahs. We didn’t have time to produce and assemble the goods, the queue for hookahs was over 20,000 pieces.

How did you deal with the coal shortage during the pandemic?

Our coal has always been in short supply and it’s not because we don’t have enough money to bring in more coal!

In fact, we bring 100 to 150 tons per month to Russia and a lot depends on the season in Indonesia and the amount of good raw materials. We only produce benchmark quality, and there is very little raw material to produce such coal in Indonesia.

Over time, people began to understand the quality of coal and today make the right choice.

How much money and time did it take to get the first fruits?

As I said above, I started the business with my own funds of 300,000 roubles.

I began to reap the first benefits roughly 2 years later, because during this time I only invested in the business and worked at another job at the same time.

 How many people work with you?

If you add up the production, office and warehouse staff, it’s about 30 people.

 What do you think it takes for a brand to be at the top? To be the best?

That’s a tough question, everyone has their own way of growing their business.

I think the basic one is:

  1. Price/quality ratio of the product.
  2. Uniqueness of the product.
  3. A good sales team.
  4. High service.
  5. Marketing.

Are there any funny situations in your life related to the hookah industry?

To be honest, we often laugh in the office when our company is called BigMac, especially the drivers or couriers who come to us for product.

 What do you think the future holds for the hookah industry?

I think it’s going to be good, I don’t even want to think about the sad stuff.

Name the top 3 coals in your opinion.

I do not know who to put in second and third place, I’m afraid to make a mistake. And the fact that our coal is the most stable in Russia, I think everyone knows.

What are the top 3 hookahs you like, name the top 3 in your opinion.
For myself, I can distinguish two brands:

1 . HOOB – these are my good friends and I like what they do! Stylish and original!

2 .Alfa Hookah – it’s the leader in sales not only in Russia, but also in Europe.

 What new products can you expect in 2021?

This year we have announced 2 new products: KING waterpipe and our new design (4in1) called RICH.

 

What advice can you give to beginners?

Don’t be afraid to start, if you start, do it with quality and go all the way!

What is your credo in life that helps move your company forward?

The most important – it is my favorite business, which has already become more than a job! Second – it is the team that has been formed and that only goes forward. And the third – is a great desire to be a leader in everything!

Thank you very much for the interview!

 

#BigMaks
#bowl
#coal
#Interview
#King

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