Entrepreneur Sweeps Russian Lokum Market

Speaking to Today’s Zaman, Yılmaz recounted: “When I graduated from college in 2002, I wanted to open a business in the textile industry. However, due to economic hardships at that time, I started selling lokum based on a suggestion from my friend.” Noting that many in Russia are still not familiar with lokum, he spoke of his plans to expand his business by opening small booths to sell lokum at shopping malls. He explained, “In order to introduce lokum to more Russians, we started opening small shops under the brand ‘Nimet.’ Our first shop was at a shopping mall called İyun, where many shoppers would stare at our products from a distant. However, after we began offering samples they found they loved it [lokum] and immediately bought some.” Having now sold 450 tons of lokum in Russia, Yılmaz indicated that in the near future, his company plans to open up another 10 lokum booths at shopping centers in St. Petersburg. He noted: “Russians love sweets, even during crises times, we sold five to six times more than we had predicted.” (FARUK AKKAN , ST. PETERSBURG, TODAY'S ZAMAN)