IKEA and Russian Workmanship
Of course, yesterday was international women's day. I'm sure that not everyone knows this, but it was and it is highly celebrated throughout Russia (as it is celebrated in most European countries and other world countries).
Thus, we went shopping at IKEA. Hey, it was women's day. What do you expect?
Also, I like shopping at IKEA, and like getting out of the house more often than I do.
So, my girlfriend got to go shopping and buy things. However, she didn't want several things saying that she wants to "save the better things for when she gets a new apartment" (something she has slated for a date in approximately 6 months...but her ideas would require another wait as she wants something "new").
Anyway, at IKEA she bought cheap bowls, cheap plates, a cheap skillet (I'm not a fan of cheap skillets, or materials in cooking) and other small things like this.
So, in reading the labels, I saw an interesting coincidence in these bowls and plates. One was not that they are both ceramic.
On the label applied to the bowls (both stuck and printed on the bottom) it reads "Design and Quality IKEA of Sweden", then the next line "Made in China."
This is common of products these days, and often at IKEA and other stores world wide. (Although, many here know that I often have a fondness for Swedish things...except the cultural habit of not showing emotion, which I haven't experienced much. And I do like the bluntness...it can be refreshing and annoying and both are good for me.)
So then there were the plates. The plates have only a small symbol impressed in the bottom center and very little detail to that. She chose the cheapest plates there, because "there is no need to get others, since she'll need completely different everything for a new apartment anyway."
The applied label (paper with adhesive) reads simply: "Made in Russia."
There were plastic hangers (she wouldn't opt for wooden, even though I pointed out that I didn't want the plastic). They also read only "Made in Russia."
Let me explain the difference here. Made in China has the IKEA label and "quality", while the made in Russia had no such "quality" labeling.
This is just as interesting knowing that many Russians complain about Russian quality. One instance being that to make BMW's cheaper, they began manufacturing some in Kaliningrad. (The Kaliningrad region is a like a small part of Russia that is between Germany and Poland.) Unfortunately, they wouldn't sell because even Russians wouldn't buy them fearing poor quality. Which, after testing, was found true (although I wouldn't have believed it). Thus BMW had to restructure everything and even assign German management and quality engineers.
This trend seems normal. When I am happy to buy Russian products, just thinking that I'm supporting people that I know, Russians usually tell me that I should have bought something else, or tell me that it won't last more then a few months before it "malfunctions" in some way.
[Obviously, this trend is less common for software produced in Russia, which I also find seems to be quite nice.]
Russian explain this poor quality on the fact that they are, and I'm quoting, 'lazy workers.'
I find, personally, that Russians are probably no different that workers of most nations. And thus, it has actually only created a difficult 'branding' of sorts that will be difficult to overcome without hard work. (While Americans are considered lazy, I have met many VERY hard workers and lazy workers is not a norm for me. Lazy away from work, or driving rather than walking may be true, but most people do work hard because they don't have any older Soviet mentalities that their performance and pay are not related. Yes, in America, generally, your performance and pay are directly proportionate. If you work hard, you will probably do better and advance more frequently. Exceptions of course are the enthusiast ass-kissers...which are simply better at politics or just spend more time on politics than work. However, with poor performance, they also will not advance.)
This was the other explanation that I received: Russians often have a more Soviet worker mentality that it doesn't matter if they work harder, the pay will stay the same. This may be why more enthusiastic workers, usually young workers, advance so much faster. (Another is the job market is starving for skilled workers).
As with what another friend pointed out, that during Soviet times, 'only the best foreign products were imported'. Obviously, I wasn't here then, so I don't know, but it might explain for the thinking that the best things are imported rather than locally made.
Too bad. Russian products quite often outlive my use for them...then again, all things are transient for me...even me.