CEM KOZLU ATILLA DOGUDAN

Now, that's very true, but you only mention the six or seven months when you first came. You don't mention the previous ten years. We argued about this brand with Coca-Cola for ten years. The fact that you finished the deal in seven months after you arrived is already a great thing, because the first ten years passed like that. But of course, the issue of brand is very important. Coca-Cola is one of the biggest brands in the world. By looking at them and other big brands, we thought about how we could do something different. In the service sector, there aren't many big brands in the world, and our vision was to become number one in the service sector, just like Coca-Cola in its sector. What does that mean? There are things that a brand represents. What is our brand? Ultimately, it's quality and meticulous attention to detail, with a great focus on surprising and entertaining the customer or passenger in an unexpected way, and ultimately satisfying them. If we can do that, we become a brand.

In short, without upsetting anyone, by winning everyone's heart. If we can't do that, the brand will disappear in a short time.

First of all, success is never about money. Just as an athlete wants to become European or world champion, it's a dream, as they say the American way. For me, or for us, the goal was to become number one in the world and build a brand. Now, how can we achieve this? People or a company, without losing customers, the important thing is this: I started with myself 25 years ago. Our only goal was that whoever comes should leave satisfied.

But it comes from a father-son conflict. My late father, I understand him much better now. He was always right, but I didn't see it that way then. But I was also right. Looking back 25 years later, he had created his own system. I wanted to create something of my own, and my vision was to do something on a global scale. But at that time, as I said, it was a dream; I was a student at university. He would tell me every day, 'It won't work, what are you doing?' and so on. I got tired of it. So I said, 'Let me start something on my own, let's see. If it doesn't work, I'm doomed to come back anyway.' He said okay, he lent me money, and he got back every last penny. Of course, he gave it back later, but in terms of education, being very strict and very honest was very good. That education cannot be bought with money today; it cannot be obtained at any university. So I have to thank him.

First of all, these departments are very beneficial to each other. When anyone does a job, they have to think about how to do it as a business case. In our business, I didn't want to do just the airline business, just the restaurant business, just the hotel business, or just the catering and organization business. I wanted to do all of them by connecting them. Why? First, we diversify risks; you don't put all your money on one table. Second, each department yields a benefit, and we use that benefit in another department. For example, on a plane, in 4 square meters, you learn how to serve good quality food to 250-300 people from a system perspective. There, in a 4-square-meter space, our restaurant kitchens are not 300 square meters. So we work more efficiently than others. Therefore, we use the knowledge we gain there in other areas.

Of course there are, but not only between Turkey and Austria; there are differences between Austria and America, and between Asia and Turkey. The important thing is to respect each culture, understand it, and within that culture, create a good ambiance and convince people of the vision.

Luck is of course very important, but there is something I believe: the luck of a working person is sometimes more abundant. The luck of a persistent person is also more abundant. For example, I started in '81, and for 6 years I was unlucky, let's say. No luck came. Then I met Niki Lauda. At that time, he had two planes, a tiny charter company with about 15 pilots. He told me that he always wanted to sell something to Austrian Airlines, but they always said, 'You're not doing anything, you're nobody.' He came to me and said, 'Can you give me the same food you serve in your restaurant?' I said I can do it, because in service, you never say no; you always say yes, then you figure out how to do it. I said okay. He said he would start in about a year. Then he said, 'Can you start in two weeks?' I said, 'How about four?' He said no, three. So three weeks later, by putting tables together at night in the restaurant, we started airline catering for the first time. I had no idea, but we flew day and night, did the catering, got on the plane, saw how they do it, how they welcome passengers, whether they like it or not, and started training the flight attendants. Anyway, from two planes it became 25 planes. He grew, and we grew. That is luck, of course, a coincidence. Or in '92, Mr. Ecclestone, who runs Formula 1 and achieved great success, had a conflict with the catering company in Budapest, 300 km from Vienna. He asked who was in Vienna, and it came to us. I went there, and he said, 'Can you do this in 10 days?' At that time, customs, everything was closed; there was no open market. I said yes again. We took it with bags and nets, almost smuggled it by car, and we were chosen as the best catering that year. Then it became two, then four, and today we do this in 17 countries.

We bought it 5-6 years ago. As you said, it was very dusty, but it's a 200-year-old culture of quality, the pastry shop of sultans and emperors, their ice cream, etc. It's a very important brand. We are slowly polishing it. We are not doing everything at once; it's a model. Essentially, the vision is to become the world's best chocolate brand. The same story here: a big vision to make the world's best chocolate. Of course, with a 200-year-old brand, by slowly polishing it, hopefully we can continue this way.

Now, the whole story is essentially about culture. There is no way to buy this with money. The culture lived within an institution or a company ultimately affects the product in a very important way. From the very first day, we determined that quality is the most important point, and every employee here knows this. It's a story from the heart. As I said, we cannot buy it with money. The only way to ensure the best quality is to live this culture together.

It doesn't work with punishment, of course. It works with education, but the education also needs to be in a good atmosphere. Our good thing is that we have both an airline division, a restaurant division, and we work on big events like the Euro or Formula 1. Young people do this with pleasure and see that it's a great opportunity. Therefore, they believe in what we say and that this path is correct.

Of course, just like in sports, it's the same in business. Losing makes a person stronger and more attentive, let's say. When I started, for the first three years, I was on the verge of bankruptcy every day. Starting with a good idea doesn't mean immediate success. In such things, having a continuous vision is very important, and the vision must be clear. For me, I am condemned to provide the best quality, no matter what. I have to. Only in this way can I continue.

Now, for a young team, the European Championship, then Formula 1, then equestrian, then tennis, golf... Such opportunities are created that they enjoy it. Because working in such an ambiance is one thing, working in a closed factory is another. Of course, working in such an ambiance motivates them and broadens their horizons. They travel all over the world. After finishing university, some come to us and start entering management. There is a saying by the great actor Sir Laurence Olivier: he advises young actors to use it when they encounter it. I experienced an example of this once. In a play in London, a rather strange servant character gets up from the table and accidentally drops a large white napkin. Now all the viewers are wondering who will pick up the napkin from the floor. A slightly drunk man, in a way not in the script, tries to pick up the napkin with his foot. When he finished and picked it up from the floor, believe me, people stood up and applauded. That advice stuck with me. Now I'm curious, when you encounter a big obstacle, a wall blocking your path, how do you react? Do you recover quickly? How many times do you try? How do you give yourself energy and motivation? What are your reactions? What is your strategy to overcome a big obstacle?

The important thing when facing an unexpected obstacle is to immediately analyze it in management. What kind of obstacle is it? How long, big, high, low? You need to do that with a clear mind. Immediately bring the team together and have a preliminary discussion on how we will overcome this obstacle and solve the problem. We exchange ideas, reach a conclusion, and then implement that conclusion immediately.

Okay, sometimes I have experienced that some obstacles are such that you cannot share them with the team, or they are very personal. In that case, you have to analyze alone, take a risk in an entrepreneurial way, and make a decision. The important thing is to make a decision. Not making a decision is definitely bad, 10000%. When you make that decision, sometimes with a decision you feel, and from the past, how we overcame similar obstacles quickly. If analyzed quickly, I mean in a minute or two, there is no two-hour or three-hour thing. Make a decision immediately and set out.

Thank you, ah.