After Moscow planetarium project, UK company plans more investment in Russia

David Cameron, U.K. prime minister, led a business delegation to Moscow in September, pledging a warming in bilateral ties at a business level. Modern Russia recently interviewed a delegation host, Martin Howe, the chief executive of U.K. company Global Immersion to find out more about what bilateral relations are like at the business level and the company’s plans for the Russian market.

For those out there who are unfamiliar with Global Immersion’s work, could you briefly explain what the company does?

We build immersive theaters, high performance digital environments in public spaces: museums, attractions and theme parks, which are unique in that they wrap the audience in immersive experiences, images and effects. These environments range from digital planetariums and giant screen cinemas to 3D and 4D theaters and beyond.

You’ve recently entered the Russian market, with the Moscow planetarium project. What was your experience? How was the business climate?    

As with most of the other countries we work in, there was a layer of bureaucracy, and in Russia it was significantly higher than we have previously experienced. But the benefits are that it was a lot clearer for both parties - the contracting phase was actually very straight forward. There was a lot of work to get that contract finalized but it’s all about being clear. And frankly it’s better that way – it’s quite a complicated process and we had a very clear idea of what we had to do, what our obligations were. We prefer that clarity and detail.

 You’re currently drawing up a strategy for future projects in Russia, can you talk about this?

Our background is primarily science centers, museums and planetariums, and with the very strong space and science heritage in Russia, we have been provided with an opportunity, and the conditions, to create a leadership position in those markets and technical industries. We’re very well placed to replicate and further innovate upon what we’ve done in Moscow in other parts of the country, now that we have the experience, reputation, and a good reference point to start from.

Did the Russian government’s emphasis on developing the high tech sector have any impact on your entry to the Russian market?

Yes, in a way. When considering our export opportunities we considered Russia, India and China to be ambitious countries, but we thought of Russia as easier to get into - although there’s a language barrier, the culture is quite similar. We found we had a lot in common and a lot of similarities and [shared] principles. We saw this flagship project [the Moscow planetarium] as one of many springboards to other work.

Is there a real warming of ties on the business level between the U.K. and Russia? Are technology deals part of this?

Yes, I think part of it is helped along by the British Embassy, who were really enthusiastic in helping us to find new contacts and relationships in Russia and helping us establish there. What Britain tends to offer the world is innovation and creativity, and Russia’s strengths are science and engineering - so that forms a good-fit partnership.

Will Putin’s return to the presidency have any bearing on your business strategy?

We have seen that changes in politics in Russia tend to slow things down just before the change, but once the change takes place it leads to a whole wave of new initiatives - perhaps because the government wants to show that they are investing and stimulating growth. So after the election it is likely there will be more investment. And we want to be there when that happens.