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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

AGENCY TO CLEAR HURDLES FOR BUSINESSPEOPLE

21 September, 1999 - 00:00

The life of a business person is like steeplechase. And it is simply great that there are firms that make removing hurdles their business. One of them is the Via Kiev Agency, the Ukrainian affiliate of Latvia's Via Riga Lufthansa City Center.

The agency's general manager Richard Zarins stresses that Via Kiev does not deal with tourism. “Our business,” says he, “is selling air tickets and doing everything connected with it: information on any flights, airports, and how to get from the airport to the city, that is, any information might interest a businessperson, so that he/she can get where she/he needs to go without any delay or problems.” The agency works with all air companies represented in Ukraine. This allows it to choose the most convenient flight option in case of the most complicated request. Tickets are delivered free of charge in Kyiv. Other services are a monthly payment option, a complete monthly statistical report (especially appealing for big companies with frequent flyer employees), and whatever form of order is most convenient the customer — phone, fax, or e-mail.

“Some potential customers may be misled by the fact that the title of our agency includes the logo of the well-known German airline Lufthansa,” Mr. Zarins continues. “They may think we only work with that airline. This is not so. Lufthansa City Center in our title is something like a sign of quality. This means we are part of an international organization which was once set up under the aegis of this air company and now comprises 298 independent travel agencies in Germany and over one hundred agencies in other countries, including Ukraine.”

Today, Via Kiev caters to over fifty corporate customers in Ukraine, most of which are offices of foreign firms and companies, joint ventures, and embassies. At the outset, the company was built on attracting precisely these customers. First, because they are staffed with foreigners who will want to fly home at least once within certain period of time; secondly, because the offices and firms with foreign capital are supposed to be a bit wealthier than local companies; thirdly, because Western employees are aware that it is more profitable to work with an agency than directly with each airline; and fourthly, we had no time to explain to Ukrainian businessmen that a certain Aunt Liuda, an acquaintance at Zhuliany Airport, is not always the guarantee of fast and reliable ticket reservations.

Now, according to Mr. Zarins, “The time has come also to orient toward Ukrainian customers. And cooperation with The Day is our first such step into the world of Ukrainian business, for The Day , unlike many other Ukrainian publications, is a newspaper read by serious businesspeople.”

The Via Kiev Agency has graciously agreed to be one of the main sponsors of the Weekend in Riga contest announced today by The Day , the winner of which, as you may already have guessed, will go to the capital of Latvia on Christmas Eve. Mr. Zarins explains why they are interested in such cooperation: “We look into the future and understand that today's Ukrainian students may become our customers within time. And another thing: the Baltic states have managed to achieve more than Ukraine and other former Soviet sister states in the past 7-8 years. Why not share this experience? It seems to me that young people will be glad to go to Riga and see how things are done there, meet their peers, and perhaps even establish some contacts which might be useful in the future.”

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