Moscow Madness: Crime, Corruption, and One Man's Pursuit of Profit in the New Russia [Hardcover]

Timothy Harper (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 19, 1999

This is the story of Rick Grajirena and his efforts to import and distribute Miller Beer in a land where capitalism is as capricious and corrupt as the bureaucrats, soldiers, hustlers, and ever-present "Mafiya" he had to include in the process. It is an entertaining and highly enlightening tale of vision and persistence that has a little bit of everything -- crime, cross-cultural confusion, corruption at the highest levels -- all inter-twined with Harper's dramatic account of Grajirena's struggle to dominate the new "Wild West" of Russia.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Moscow Madness is an exciting tale about the insanity of doing business behind the old Iron Curtain. Timothy Harper tells the true story of Richard Grajirena, an American who sets up a Miller Beer distribution company in Moscow. Russia was thirsty for his beer, but Grajirena becomes overwhelmed by the craziness of doing business there in the early 1990s. In Russia's evolving capitalism, he discovers, "it is almost impossible for small businesses to survive the pressure of contradictory laws and regulations, bureaucracy and criminals."

Grajirena, a former world-class yachtsman, wanted to become rich in post-Communist Russia. Instead, he gets victimized by the black market, corrupt customs agents, wild swings in currency-exchange rates, skyrocketing taxes and fees, and the Russian mob. His business collapses after he refuses to pay outright bribes or deal with organized crime. Harper writes, "Grajirena was astonished and frightened by the reach of the 'mafiya' and the gang lords relying on thugs who were happy to commit casual mayhem for a few American dollars. They used violence and intimidation to turn central Moscow into a version of gangland Chicago in the Capone era." Released 10 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, this book offers some excellent insights for investors and others interested in Russia's struggle with free enterprise. --Dan Ring

From Publishers Weekly

Harper, a journalist who writes about Russian business, tells the hard-luck story of Rick Grajirena, a determined entrepreneur from Tampa, Fla. According to Grajirena, "Moscow Madness" is the tendency of Westerners to abandon moderation when confronted with standard Russian benchmarks (e.g., a bottle of vodka). But Grajirena, the title's man in pursuit of profit, is himself prone to a different sort of madnessAthe belief that he can prosper in the new Russia while dismissing those standards. Grajirena is a self-avowed straight arrow; for him that means no late-night networking, no boozy deal-making, no mafia involvement and no tricks with customs and tax agents. As the sole distributor of Miller beer in Moscow in the 1990s, such scruples proved to be a handicap. After three years as an entrepreneurial pioneer, Grajirena's dream of riches flowing from a beer keg in a society weaned on harder drink ended in bankruptcy. In telling Grajirena's story, Harper draws on a colorful cast of charactersAincluding a would-be supplier of "heavy equipment" to the Syrian government, a legendary Moscow restaurateur from New Jersey and a battalion of young Russian coeds who form the first Miller "Cold Patrol" in MoscowAevoking a sense of the realities of the new Russia. However, he would have done well to end his tale with the demise of Grajirena's beer distribution company instead of forging ahead with a somewhat tedious account of his next venture. Perhaps the author couldn't resist one final gem of ironyAthe beer man went on to peddle a line of hangover remedies to his former customers.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Mcgraw-Hill (April 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0070267006
• ISBN-13: 978-0070267008
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,303,345 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miller Time? Nyet.., July 24, 2000

By 

taking a rest - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Moscow Madness: Crime, Corruption, and One Man's Pursuit of Profit in the New Russia (Hardcover)

This is one of, if not the most, entertaining business stories I have ever read. I have several friends from former Soviet Republics, including Russia, and the only thing they would find surprising about my reaction to this book, would be that I was surprised.

The former Soviet Union and now several of the Former Republics always have fascinated me. As I have come to know some of its citizens I am less fascinated, but I am more interested, less perplexed, and find the future of these Countries great "what if" scenarios. A better-posited question might be when? Western Capitalists have found the hard way that just because the new name is "The Former Soviet Union" that does not mean 3 generations of dysfunctional Soviet practices disappear. The idea that generations that have grown up under Central Planning, artificial markets, and the rest of the elements that create a fictional economy are going to adopt and practice Capitalism instantly is absurd...former barriers fall, but they do not disappear, as many western investors were to learn, they were just replaced with new obstacles.

I have nothing but respect for Mr. Rick Grajirena. To even attempt what he did is beyond the level of risk that 99% of American Businesses have taken or will ever take. His business did not just have the exposure of failing, he put himself at personal risk, and that is not something a Silicon Valley start up faces. In Silicon Valley a roof keeps out the weather, in the case of this businessman it keeps you alive. For in the Moscow he chose to do business with, a roof has nothing to do with a building.

I think Mr. Grajirena is one of the world's great optimists, and a man who defines perseverance. Unfortunately these attributes are not what business is about in Russia or many of The Former Republics...The natural and human resources that are part of the former USSR are literally amazing. The wealth that could be created across the 14 time zones would be unprecedented... There are the predators and the prey. This is worse as these are not Countries without Governments; rather the Governments are the largest Predators of all.

Breaking something is easy, but if you consider it took the better part of the 20th Century to damage these Countries, what is the most optimistic time period for them to be reassembled?

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars New Innocents Abroad, February 25, 2001

By 

Kirill Pankratov - See all my reviews

This review is from: Moscow Madness: Crime, Corruption, and One Man's Pursuit of Profit in the New Russia (Hardcover)

Would you buy a book entitled "How I was trying to sell beer in a country X and blew it"? Probably not. What about "How I traveled with pirates, battled dragons, saved princess, selling beer overseas"? In fact "Moscow Madness" promises on its cover jacket an adventurous tale in the latter style, while delivering for the most part a fairly mundane business story.

Embellishment of one's foreign adventures goes back to times earlier than Marco Polo or even Homer. But what is remarkable about this book is that it is actually more honest, plausible, and conventional that juicy tag lines and excerpts on its cover. It is a story of some business successes and mishaps, cultural discoveries and misunderstandings, under the titillating wrap of crime, corruption and debauchery. Many of such stories could happen elsewhere, almost all of them - in any country during big transformation.

What about the omnipresent "mafiya" and "roofs"? Contrary to widespread perception and come-ons of the book cover, one can find that Mr. Grajirena (the book protagonist) and his company weren't threatened by "mafiya". A couple of times they considered doing business - on their own initiative - with shady-looking characters, and eventually declined. Most of the talk about "mafiya" in the book is a collection of keg party gossips and third-hand accounts. This doesn't mean that "mafiya" and corruption didn't exist - there were (and still are) plenty of them; it just wasn't completely unavoidable.

It is a common knowledge that many western businessmen trying to do business in Moscow during 90's were in constant danger for their lives, right? Actually, statistics tells a different story. The only relatively high-profile American businessman killed in Moscow in a whole decade was Paul Tatum - co-owner of a luxury hotel complex. Tatum adopted "mafiosi" style more enthusiastically than any "New Russians", surrounding himself with thuggish bodyguards and miniskirted bimbos, and swam in chaos and corruption like fish in the water. Even many of his fellow American expats said they saw it coming.

A few years ago I witnessed (in US) an attempt to make a payment in a Russian-American business deal with a suitcase of dollars (the only time I've seen a suitcase full of cash in my life). No, it wasn't a stereotypical group of heavyset Russian "biznismeny" flashing piles of cash to the consternation of their American partners. Americans were the ones who brought the suitcase. The deal was in fact was totally legitimate, and neither side had any connections with organized crime How did they come up with this idea? Probably read too many stories about business in Russia, which supposedly operated only on bags of green banknotes.

The book details the story of Rick Grajirena, a renowned yachtsman, who previously ran a modestly successful business related to his sailing hobby. Nothing in his resume, however, suggested he should excel in selling beer in Moscow. In starting a business in a foreign country it would be helpful to have a thorough knowledge of either a country or a business itself. Grajirena didn't know much about either Russia or beer wholesaling. This is not an absolute prerequisite, but neither did he show enough concentration, jumping for a while from one project to another. Miller beer distribution came up only by chance, after dabbling in some other semi-serious ventures without particular focus or expertise. Why did he feel entitled to success?

Probably it had to do with the general atmosphere of the times. Many westerners in early 90's were attracted by a combination of the "new frontier" thrill, sense of self-important mission of "converting heathens", and expectation of easy buck along the line "these Russians are so clueless about business and capitalism, anybody barely able to operate a hot-dog stand should be raking in money". If this was ever true at all, it was quickly becoming less so as market reforms took hold.

In 1990 one could ride in a taxi around Moscow for half a day for just a pack of "Marlboro". It would be stupid to assume this will persist forever - and such attitude seems to be one of the causes of the First Republic eventual failure. In early 90's selling something with American brand name was easy. But the market rapidly matured. Hundreds of new consumer goods were appearing each month. The previous assumption that any western-made product will be snapped up instantly was no longer true. Prices, rents and salaries rapidly increased in dollar terms. In the beer market competition become very tough, with many foreign and new domestic entries available. Some problems they encountered were related to Miller Brewery itself. Once a large shipment of beer froze because Miller neglected to put it in insulated packaging.

As the company, after many successful months, encountered difficulties (stemming, as evident in the book, primarily from increased competition, and only to some extent due to red tape, chaotic regulations or corruption) they invited American consultants to make recommendations for improvements. Author then pours scorn on these consultants - they seemed to lack credentials they claimed. Ironically, some of their advices seem quite reasonable. Basically their suggestion was for Mr. Grajirena to behave less like an arrogant colonialist expecting almost to be carried on stretchers by obedient servants.

There is a story at the end of the book about young American lawyers - a "golden couple" with "bright future". The girl came to work in Moscow, was excited by its wild atmosphere and went into clubbing, drugs and promiscuity, left her husband, became addicted and even reportedly attempted a suicide. A stern warning - don't even dare to think that "bright future" can be anything other than working 80-hours week on some mind-numbing legalese and returning at night to a trophy home in a prestigious suburb. For many such wisdom will suffice, some others will still find more places around the world for adventure and "madness".

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tim Harper presents a compelling look at the new Russia., September 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Moscow Madness: Crime, Corruption, and One Man's Pursuit of Profit in the New Russia (Hardcover)

Moscow Madness takes you through Russian customs and then provides a forensic-like look into the business customs, chaos and cultural impediments facing American entrepreneurs seeking to be business pioneers in the new Russia. Tim Harper presents a compelling and original hybrid style of writing that is part novelist and part foreign correspondent. Moscow Madness gives new meaning to "red tape." The story is told chiefly through the entrepreneurial and cultural adventures of Rich Grajirena. Although Rich Grajirena never earns more than 100,000 in a year, despite years of complicated, creative, trans-Russian endeavors, his Moscow setting machinations provide the reader with a multi-million dollar look into the new Russia. What makes the book particularly appealing and easy to relate to is that the story concerns the frustrations of an individual seeking to traverse Russia's business terrain and not a difficult to relate to conglomerate. Moscow Madness offers microscopic-like clarity as to how difficult it is to start up a successful business, let alone one that requires the successful merging of two distinct countries, cultures and colorful characters. While most present day writer/attorneys are fixated on court room drama, Harper utilizes his foreign correspondent and legal background by painting on a much larger geographical and sociological canvas. Harper convinced me that while Russia may no longer be the evil empire Moscow Madness is real.