Money, while clearly helpful in solving myriad problems, can often conceal a business's real flaws. It can also risk rigidifying a company's business model at the very moment it should be in 'customer discovery' mode or iterating around market opportunities.

Maelle Gavet

There's always a fine line between being too focused and missing opportunities, or being too wide and taking on too many.

Maelle Gavet

The Russians are not as addicted to coffee as the Americans. We should work on that!

Maelle Gavet

The biggest deficit in terms of gender equality at Ozon lay in our IT department. So we made a decision, along with our key IT leaders, to remove all filters and systemically interview all the women who apply.

Maelle Gavet

Consumers learn the value of being sure that what you want to buy is what you buy.

Maelle Gavet

The pickup points are a natural additional network for delivery. For me, the surprise is that Amazon didn't come up with that idea.

Maelle Gavet

I think Russia is a difficult country, and it's very difficult for people to adapt here, especially if they don't speak the language well.

Maelle Gavet

When a handful of tech giants are gatekeepers to the world's data, it's no surprise that the debate about balancing progress against privacy is framed as 'pro-data and, therefore, innovation' versus 'stuck in the Dark Ages'.

Maelle Gavet

From the consumer perspective, what happened in the U.S. 10 years ago and Europe five years ago is now happening in Russia. People are beginning to understand that e-commerce is easy and safe.

Maelle Gavet

If you have drive and energy, everything is possible.

Maelle Gavet

The Russian customers don't feel very comfortable with online transactions.

Maelle Gavet

The general message would be to say to all these young people: If you have entrepreneurial aspirations, there is money, there are consumers, there is a huge market. The only thing you need to do is to go there and start doing things.

Maelle Gavet

At Ozon, salaries are evaluated every year based on market benchmarks which are gender neutral.

Maelle Gavet

Competition is good because we need to educate customers, and Ozon.ru itself will not be able to do it.

Maelle Gavet

I have learned that I must take a holiday at least once each year if I want to survive!

Maelle Gavet

I am an optimist. I believe the future is bright. I think people who see life painted in dark colors are the ones who do not take ownership.

Maelle Gavet

Russians are not a very friendly people. It's hard to get them to speak nicely to the customers. It's just not in their culture.

Maelle Gavet

After I completed the project for BCG, I was offered the position of Director of Marketing for Ozon.ru.

Maelle Gavet

That's the mantra I use when the team tells me something is too complicated. People keep saying, 'We need more prioritization.' I say, 'Guys, what you want is less work. And that is not going to happen.'

Maelle Gavet

While I accept that large investment rounds will always garner headlines, it's almost as if the magic number of how much cash you've managed to raise has become both a stamp of approval and the main metric for gauging a business's true worth.

Maelle Gavet

The fundamental vision hasn't changed. What does change is how you get there, because there are still problems you have to figure out.

Maelle Gavet