Kim (formerly Bakalchuk) Tatyana Vladimirovna

Biography

Tatiana Bakalchuk studied at the Gas Pipeline High School between 1981 and 1992.

She received her higher education at the Moscow State Regional Social and Humanitarian Institute in 1992-1997.

After graduation, she worked as an English teacher.

2004-2005

When Tatyana Bakalchuk had a child in 2004 and it became difficult to earn teaching, she decided to start selling clothes and shoes via the Internet. The warehouse at the initial stage was its own apartment, and the original assortment consisted of the products of German catalog workers - Otto and Quelle.

When Tatyana Bakalchuk decided to open her own business, her husband Vladislav was already an experienced entrepreneur. The website of the online store Wildberries was made by a company owned by him.

In 2005, the family Internet business evolved into Wildberries LLC, which later became the most visited online store in Runet with an assortment of more than 100 thousand items from 1 thousand brands.

2017: Courts with suppliers and launch of PR campaign about Bakalchuk's success story

In 2017, Wildberries had a conflict with suppliers. In less than a year, the company received more than two dozen lawsuits from partners.

Wildberries managed to win such courts. On a business scale (Wildberries turnover in 2017 amounted to almost 47.5 billion rubles, profit - 1.5 billion), the amount of claims was generally insignificant. But due to the closure of the company in the market, rumors of financial problems spread.

Managers complained to Tatyana Bakalchuk and her husband about difficulties in negotiations with suppliers, recalls a former Wildberries employee. The company wanted to work with expensive brands, and they first asked: "Don't you go bankrupt?"

Then the Bakalchuk first decided to hire professional PR specialists, several interlocutors in this market told The Bell in 2020. ^[1]. The search was entrusted to Yegor Pchelintsev, one of the oldest employees of Wildberries. He is now the director of advertising and PR. Pchelintsev chose the small PR agency "Lamp."

A former Wildberries employee recalls that the partnership with PR people turned out to be difficult: it was not possible to pull out information reports, the company's employees ignored the questions of external PR people in their work correspondence. But they did not despair. Having put on stream the production of press releases about quarterly indicators and the launch of new product categories, they began to persuade Tatyana Bakalchuk to become the heroine of a large material in one of the leading business publications. A few months later, she agreed.

PR consultants decided that it was most profitable to position the company through the story of self-made woman, a former English teacher who launched a business shortly after the birth of her child.

The material was published in Forbes magazine. He largely repeated the article in the same edition, published in 2012. But since no one has told about Wildberries in detail since then, the publication worked exactly as it was intended. Suppliers became more loyal, seeing in Bakalchuk "businesswoman from the plow," there was no end to journalists. Gradually, Tatyana got involved, began to participate in social life.

In 2018, the founder of Wildberries gave the first video interview in her life to the YouTube channel of billionaire Igor Rybakov. His company "Technonicol" then made the roof for the largest Wildberries warehouse with an area of ​ ​ 145 thousand square meters. m near Podolsky.

"Such large companies are necessarily built in partnership: one person is a system manager (this is Vladislav [Bakalchuk]), the second is the soul, the vibration of the world (this is Tatiana)," Rybakov argued in an interview with The Bell. - People around Tatiana rally, unite. She charges them with the idea, and everyone feels important to achieve the goal. It's a family business. For some reason, it is generally accepted that there is one leader. There are actually two of them and both are in critical roles. "

Later in the spring of 2020, at the height of the quarantine, Tatyana Bakalchuk tried on the role of an exponent of the interests of the entire industry, suggesting that the authorities close the trading floors of grocery stores.

2020: Tatiana Bakalchuk is the richest woman in Russia

On February 20, 2020, Forbes magazine estimated Tatyana Bakalchuk's fortune at $1.4 billion, as a result of which the co-founder and owner of the online retailer Wildberries became the richest woman in Russia.

Earlier, the leader in the rating of the wealthiest Russians was Elena Baturina, who heads the development company Inteco Management. Baturina's fortune in 2020, as in 2019, is estimated at $1.2 billion.

The owner of the Internet retailer Wildberries has become the richest woman in Russia

Bakalchuk's fortune in 2020 relative to 2019 increased by $400 million due to an 88% increase in Wildberries turnover to 223.5 billion rubles, including due to an increase in the number of suppliers and a twofold increase in the assortment. The store's assortment grew from 1.8 million to 3.6 million items, the number of processed orders also doubled and reached 164 million.

The growth was facilitated by a decrease in the commission for partners from 38% to 15% and the launch of the Centers for E-Commerce Expertise, - said Vyacheslav Ivashchenko, Development Director of Wildberries, to the magazine.

Tatiana Bakalchuk became the richest Russian woman after Wildberries took first place in the ranking of the 10 largest online sellers in Russia. On the second and third lines, Aeroflot (221 billion rubles) and AliExpress (201.4 billion rubles).

For the first  time, the founder of Wildberries entered the list of the richest Russians in 2018 with a fortune of 600 million. A dollars year  later, her income doubled and almost equaled the wealth of Baturina, who has been on the Forbes list since 2004. In the ranking of 200 richest businessmen in Russia according to Forbes for 2019, Bakalchuk took 94th place.

According to Forbes, Bakalchuk is the sole owner of Wildberries. This is a non-public company, so its value is estimated by sales and profit, as well as multipliers of similar projects and estimates of venture capitalists.^[2]

2021

Tatyana Bakalchuk - the new owner of Standard-Credit Bank

On February 12, 2021, it became known about the change of owners of Standard Credit Bank. 100 percent share in it passed to the general director of Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk. Read more here.

Tatyana Bakalchuk and Vladislav Bakalchuk are the richest family in Russia

Co-owners of Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk and Vladislav Bakalchuk became the richest family in Russia. This was reported by Forbes magazine with reference to its updated rating, which was published at the end of August 2021.

The state of the Bakalchuk family is, according to the publication, $13.1 billion. 99% of Wildberries belongs to the spouse, husband - 1%.

According to the magazine in Wildberries, according to Russian law, a company with only one participant does not have the right to create 100% subsidiaries. The transfer of 1% of Wildberries to Vladislav Bakalchuk [the deal took place at the end of December 2019] is a "purely technical action" aimed at simplifying the registration of subsidiaries and building the holding's structure, Forbes explained in Wildberries.

Tatyana Bakalchuk and Vladislav Bakalchuk - the richest family in Russia according to the Forbes rating

According to Forbes, the company was originally built as a family, the separation of shares made it possible to include the family in the rating.

Bakalchuk is the richest Russian woman according to Forbes. Her fortune for the year increased by 1200% and amounted to $13 billion. She removed from the first place the widow of the former mayor of Moscow, Yuri Luzhkov, the founder of Inteko, Elena Baturina.

The second place in the list of the richest families in Russia was taken by the family of Andrei Guryev, deputy chairman of the board of directors of the Phosagro chemical holding ($6.9 billion). The third is the Rotenberg brothers, who earn on the lord's orders ($5.95 billion).

The fourth place in the ranking was taken by the family of Mikhail Gutseriev, chairman of the board of directors of the Safmar group. Over the year, the family's fortune also increased by $500 million to $3.7 billion. In fifth place is the chairman of the board of directors of AFK Sistema Vladimir Yevtushenkov and his son Felix. Their total fortune is estimated at $3.2 billion.

According to Forbes, the total capital of the ten richest families in Russia for the year increased by $16.1 billion - to $42.9 billion by the end of August 2021.^[3]

Condition growth of more than 1000%

Since the beginning of 2021, Tatyana Bakalchuk's fortune has increased by more than 1000%, and this increase was the strongest among the richest people on the planet. Such data on December 8, 2021 was cited by Forbes magazine. Read more here.

State growth by $11.92 billion, to $13.02 billion

In 2021, the total fortune of the richest Russians increased by $101.39 billion. In second place in terms of the speed of wealth growth is the founder of Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk, whose fortune in 2021 increased by $11.92 billion (to $13.02 billion). Wildberries was boosted by a successful initial public offering (IPO) of Ozon, a major rival to Wildberries, according to Forbes. Read more here.

2023: The richest woman in Russia

At the end of August 2023, Forbes magazine published a rating of the 20 richest women in Russia in 2023. It was headed for the second time by the general director and main owner of Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk with a capital estimate of $7 billion. Read more here.

2024

The richest woman in Russia

As of August 2024, the richest woman in Russia is the founder and co-owner of the Wildberries marketplace Tatyana Bakalchuk - her fortune is estimated at $5.5 billion. In total, the list includes eight participants whose capital is $1 billion or more. For comparison, a year earlier there were seven of them, and before that for a long time in the Russian Federation there were only two women with a billionth fortune. This is stated in Forbes materials released on August 30, 2024. Read more here

Halving fortunes after Wildberries merge with Russ

The fortune of the founder and general director Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk almost halved - from $7.4 billion to $4.1 billion. This decline occurred after the merger of Wildberries with an outdoor advertising operator, Russ reports in September 2024. Forbes This association led to the fact that Bakalchuk lost 35% of the shares of his company, which is equivalent to about $3.4 billion. This, as well as ruble the fall in the course, significantly affected her condition. However, despite these circumstances, Bakalchuk retains the title of the richest woman. Russia

As Forbes betrays, the decline in fortune occurred against the background of significant changes in the structure of the company. As part of the merger with Russ, the companies registered a joint venture of RVB LLC, where Wildberries retained 65% of the shares, while Russ received 35%. Although the financial terms of the deal remain partially closed, analysts suggest that a significant share of Wildberries' assets have moved to a new venture.

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Tatiana Kim's Telegram channel

The current condition of Tatyana Bakalchuk may also be complicated by a divorce from her husband Vladislav Bakalchuk, who filed a lawsuit against the division of property. According to lawyer Sergei Zhorin, despite the absence of a marriage contract, Vladislav Bakalchuk will not be able to claim 50% of the company's assets. According to the charter of Wildberry LLC, such shares are usually not subject to division, and spouses can only claim their market value.

Analysts believe that the divorce process may be delayed, since Vladislav Bakalchuk has legal tools to challenge the transactions. According to the Honored Lawyer of Russia Lyudmila Aivar, if Vladislav files a claim for the division of property, the company's shares may be arrested before the end of the proceedings, which will complicate further transactions and business development.^[4]

"Took him somewhere and forced him to rewrite the business." Tatiana Kim says she endured marriage violence for years

On October 17, 2024, the founder of Wildberries Tatyana Kim (formerly Bakalchuk) said that during the conflict with her husband Vladislav Bakalchuk, they tried to forcibly take her out and force her to rewrite the business. She also said that she had endured violence in marriage for years.

Kim gave an interview to the Vedomosti newspaper. According to her, she was subjected to pressure from her husband for a long time, the beginning of the divorce proceedings with which was announced on July 23, 2024. The Wildberries founder mentioned how she "ran with young children behind the car" of Vladislav, as well as how things were "crashed" and "thrown out." Tatiana shared some details of the conflict with her husband.

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Tatiana Kim's Telegram channel

There were attempts to take me somewhere, to rewrite the business by force. Now he just has no way out, he has to play according to the scenario that he chose for himself, "says Kim.

The entrepreneur notes that all seven children in common with Vladislav remain on her side, and not on her father's side. The former husband, in turn, previously stated that he would like to save the family, and the divorce in their family happened due to the fact that they wanted to "squeeze out the business." At the same time, Tatiana gave comments on how she managed to endure violence in marriage for a long time.

Now many people ask me, how have I endured for so many years? Did it really happen on the same day that they began to oppress and abuse you? I say, of course not, but apparently this strength of endurance at the DNA level, if we remember the history of our state, how much we had to endure, "Kim said.

There were no prenuptial agreements or property sharing agreements between the spouses. As noted by Gazeta.Ru, the founder of Wildberries filed a lawsuit, asking the court to determine its share in the jointly acquired property as 6/7, and the ex-spouse as 1/7.^[5]

Getting a controlling stake in Russ Outdoor Operator

On October 23, 2024, it became known that the founder of Wildberries Tatyana Kim (formerly Bakalchuk) received a controlling stake in the outdoor advertising operator Russ. The corresponding changes are reflected in the Unified State Register of Legal Entities (USRUL). Read more here.

Family

Married to Vladislav Bakalchuk, Tatyana Kim gave birth to seven children (by October 2024). In a large family, twins, born in 2021, two sons and three daughters grow up.

Vladislav Bakalchuk Vladislav was previously one of her English students.

2021: The Birth of Twins

On October 1, 2021, it became known about the birth of twins from Tatyana Bakalchuk. Thus, the founder of Wildberries now raises seven children, which is one of the highest rates among the richest people in Russia.

According to RBC in the press service of the online retailer, Bakalchuk is actively involved in the work of the company and successfully combines business management and motherhood. They also noted that Wildberries seeks to create an atmosphere within the company that allows women to work and spend time with family and children.

Wildberries founder Tatyana Bakalchuk gave birth to twins

At a session of the forum on the gender situation in Russia, Tatyana Bakalchuk noted that her company is loyal to the timing of employees' withdrawal from the decree. Also in Wildberries there is a free visit mode.

The businesswoman dedicated her speech to the gender situation in the country and emphasized the moment when a woman returns from maternity leave. For many, this is a huge stress: firstly, you need to leave the child, and secondly, often women are afraid to begin their working duties, believing that they have lost their competence.

In addition to twins, Bakalchuk and her wife Vladislav have five more children - three daughters and two sons. They study at the gymnasium, are engaged in music and singing, one of the daughters plays the violin.

The founder of Wildberries became one of the richest large people in Russia. The leader here is the owner of the Moscow Credit Bank, Roman Avdeev, who has 23 children. Seven children are brought up in several families of famous billionaires at once - co-owner of Severstal Alexei Mordashov, co-owner of EvrazRoman Abramovich, president of Norilsk Nickel Vladimir Potanin and investor Gabriel Yushvaev.

Earlier, Tatyana Bakalchuk said that she created Wildberries while on maternity leave.^[6]

2022: Exit from VTB Supervisory Board

On May 13, 2022, it became known about the withdrawal of the founder and CEO of Wildberries Tatyana Bakalchuk from the VTB Supervisory Board. Read more here.

2024

Divorce announcement

On July 23, 2024, Wildberries founder Tatyana Bakalchuk announced her divorce. In addition, she denied information about the raider seizure of the marketplace, saying that the deal with outdoor advertising operator Russ is necessary for further business development.

Vladislav Bakalchuk, co-owner of Wildberries and husband of Tatyana Bakalchuk, told RBC that his wife left home on April 1, 2024. According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, Vladislav owns only 1% in Vaildberriz LLC, Tatiana - 99%. However, Vladislav believes, in the event of a division, the company will be divided "50 by 50." The fact is that the Bakalchuks do not have a marriage contract, and therefore "all property is divided in half." Vladislav expresses the hope that he and Tatyana will be able to agree on a partition without trial.

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Tatiana Bakalchuk's Telegram channel

In turn, Tatyana Bakalchuk declares that her husband does not take part in the management of the company. The entrepreneur emphasizes that the deal with Russ is fully approved and supported.

It's not a raider tackle. It's a divorce. From the very beginning, everything was agreed with Vladislav, he personally attended the presentation to the top management of the new structure of the combined company, Bakalchuk wrote in her Telegram channel.

She also said that as of July 23, 2024, she lives and works in Moscow. Her youngest children are on holiday with her mother on the date, and she "personally took the older children on a train to another city." She stressed that the personal life of each person is a personal matter of this particular person.

Why and for what purpose Vladislav misleads other people, by whom and for what purpose this story was invented with incomprehensible raiding, frankly, is a big mystery to me. I will be glad if they allow me to keep the details of my personal life with me. Nevertheless, I confirm the beginning of the divorce proceedings, - added Bakalchuk.[7]

Lawsuit against husband Vladislav Bakalchuk

On July 30, 2024, the founder of Wildberries, Tatyana Bakalchuk, announced that she had filed an application with the court to terminate her marriage with Vladislav Bakalchuk. The lawsuit concerns family legal relations.

According to the press service of the courts of general jurisdiction of Moscow, the subject of the claim is the requirements arising from family relations. It is said that the Bakalchuks had a dispute over the ownership of Wildberries assets. The application was sent to the Savelovsky District Court of Moscow. As of the end of July 2024, the decision to accept the claim for production was not made.

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Vladislav Bakalchuk Press Service

I confirm that I have officially filed a statement of claim with the court to terminate my marriage with Vladislav, - Tatiana wrote in her Telegram channel.

Vladislav Bakalchuk commented on the situation. According to him, "something really strange is happening with Tatyana." Vladislav believes that some third parties influence his spouse.

I do not know how many people and how exactly they affect her, but Tatiana, with whom we have lived side by side for more than 20 years, would never have announced an official application to the court to terminate her marriage with me in this way - dryly, briefly and through social networks. I am absolutely sure of this, - says Vladislav.

At the same time, Tatyana in an interview with Komsomolskaya Pravda said that the reason for the divorce from Vladislav "lies in the plane of personal relations," and the collapse of the marriage began long before the idea of ​ ​ merging with Russ. According to the founder of Wildberries, the merger with Russ will positively affect marketplace partners, sellers and buyers.

We are building a new company - a world leader. Unfortunately, Vladislav has a different point of view. And I understand him, this is normal. Not everyone knows how to be flexible, leave the comfort zone and make decisions, says Tatiana.[8]

Change of surname to Kim

September 23, 2024 Tatyana Bakalchuk announced the change of surname to the maiden Kim. The founder of Wildberries announced this in her Telegram channel.

The best choice is to remain yourself always. Your Tatiana (from today - again) Kim, - Kim clarified.

She also changed the name of her Telegram channel from Tatyana Bakalchuk to Tatyana Kim. The press service of the combined company Wildberries and Russ told TASS that the official procedure for changing the name has been launched.

Tatyana Bakalchuk filed a lawsuit for divorce from Vladislav Bakalchuk. A preliminary meeting on the lawsuit is scheduled for October 16, 2024.

Notes