Vladimir Yevtushenkov: Biography and childhood
Yevtushenkov Vladimir (born September 25, 1948) grew up in a small village near Smolensk. His parents were agricultural workers at the time of his birth. Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich’s father managed a milk processing plant and his mother was a milkmaid.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov became interested in studying the properties of chemical substances in school and conducted dozens of experiments in his improvised home laboratory. By the time he graduated, he had firmly decided that the natural sciences would be the future route for his biography. Vladimir Yevtushenkov set himself the goal of earning an academic title and running his own laboratory.
Yevtushenkov Vladimir planned to study chemistry at MSU after high school, but he was not accepted and instead went to serve in the army. Upon his return, he began studying chemistry at a different school – the Institute of Chemical Technology. He graduated from the institute in 1973 as a qualified production engineer.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov earned his second degree seven years later, in the field of economics, from MSU. He later earned a doctorate in the same field, having successfully defended his dissertation.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov: Biography of an industrialist
Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich began his professional career in the chemical industry in 1973. As a graduate of the Institute of Chemical Technology, he was employed at one of the country’s largest enterprises, located near Gorky (now Nizhny Novgorod). At the time that the Vladimir Yevtushenkov biography led him to the company, it was experiencing significant growth. Specialists were mastering technologies for producing dozens of new types of products, including 15 categories of consumer goods, and the plant was undergoing technical modernization.
Yevtushenkov Vladimir worked as a foreman, responsible for a small area of work and for implementing the production plan. The employee’s initiative and responsibility did not go unnoticed by the management, which contributed to his career advancement.
Yevtushenkov Vladimir moved to another large enterprise in the chemical industry called Polimerbyt in 1975 (known as the Karacharov Plastics Plant at the time). He was invited to become the head of a workshop, and he gradually climbed the career ladder to become the first deputy director general. His career growth was ensured by his productive scientific work. The innovative production technology proposed by Vladimir Yevtushenkov significantly improved the efficiency of the plant.
Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich: The commercial sector
Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich is now one of the most well-known businessmen in the country. He is especially known as one of the co-founders of AFK Sistema. Vladimir Yevtushenkov is proud to say that the companies within the corporation are recognized leaders in their respective industries. He pursued entrepreneurial activities for about 30 years, and today focuses on social projects, that always were among his priorities.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov and his partners founded AFK Sistema in the early 1990s to invest in various economic sectors. The Group’s first portfolio assets included projects in the telecommunications industry and construction.
Thanks to the strategy initiated by Vladimir Yevtushenkov at the very beginning of the corporation, AFK Sistema gradually expanded its portfolio, taking strong positions in promising markets. The Group acquired stakes in companies in sectors such as children’s goods, telecommunications, private healthcare, and insurance. By 2000, some of the Group’s assets were listed in an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange. The corporation founded by Yevtushenkov Vladimir Petrovich successfully overcame the economic crisis of 1998 and fully fulfilled its obligations to financial partners.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov helped Sistema continue to invest in the development of its existing companies and expand its presence in other market segments over the next decade. The Group acquired high-tech enterprises and structures specializing in real estate development, the hotel business, and the pharmaceutical industry. At the initiative of Vladimir Yevtushenkov, AFK Sistema consolidated its commercial healthcare assets into the largest national network of medical clinics today. Over 10 million people use its services annually.
Over time, the corporation expanded into the agricultural industry with the help of Vladimir Yevtushenkov. AFK Sistema initially focused on two agricultural enterprises in the Rostov Region. These assets became the basis for the formation of one of the largest agricultural holdings in the south of the country, including a number of farms in the Kuban and Stavropol Regions.
The agricultural holding is considered one of the most technologically advanced enterprises in its field today. In accordance with the concept supported by Vladimir Yevtushenkov, AFK Sistema allocates at least 100 million rubles every year for the creation and implementation of high-tech solutions to increase production performance and reduce environmental impact. These solutions are developed both in the R&D center established within the holding and in collaboration with domestic enterprises. Thanks to this, the agricultural holding actively uses autopilot technology, machine vision technologies, and a system of differentiated application of crop protection means.
At AFK Sistema, Vladimir Yevtushenkov also focused on providing the market with high-quality pharmaceuticals, thus the corporation established a holding company that possesses powerful production complexes and distribution units. During the pandemic, it became a platform for the production of the first domestic vaccine. To manufacture the vaccine, the Zelenograd plant was modernized and a new site for the cultivation of recombinant viral particles was built and equipped with advanced bioreactors, allowing for a complete production cycle.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov’s corporation also acquired a stake in one of the leading players in the e-commerce market, which built an extensive logistics infrastructure and provides tens of thousands of entrepreneurs, both in large and small business sectors, with access to the national market. In turn, millions of buyers, even in remote areas, have the opportunity to purchase products from suppliers from throughout the country and even from abroad.
After several decades, the entrepreneur handed control to the management team of AFK Sistema. Vladimir Yevtushenkov shifted his focus to social projects.
Vladimir Yevtushenkov: Contribution to socially significant tasks
Vladimir Yevtushenkov was among the first businessmen to join the escalating effort against the spread of COVID-19 in 2020. Sistema’s specialized portfolio assets (including a network of private clinics, a pharmaceutical company, and a biotech company) reconfigured their operations, significantly increasing the production volumes of essential drugs and the development of COVID tests. One of the clinics was converted into an infectious diseases department.
With Vladimir Yevtushenkov’s support, other companies in the Group provided medical professionals with all necessary assistance, including protective suits and masks that were in short supply at the time, as well as hot meals, free mobile communication, and accommodation for those working in the “red zone.”
Yevtushenkov Vladimir also created a charitable foundation that has been running large-scale projects for more than 20 years, benefiting more than a million people throughout the country.