Business

It is hard not to stare: the stacks of national press are dotted by black-and-white copies of The Guardian, The Sunday Times, Financial Times, Corriere della Sera, The New York Times and a couple more. On your way to work in Sofia, you can fetch yesterday’s paper, a Xeroxed copy, for about 6 leva. If you haven’t read it on the Internet already, that is.
I saw it at the corner of Stamboliyski and Vitosha Blvd. but I guess this is not the only spot for your piece of home news.

Will an ex-Communist state be the next Iceland? The Economist analyses the individual countries’ abilties to cope with the current situation. In Bulgaria and Romania, however, it is not the financial wobbles that are the problem but the corrupt and incompetent politics. For more, log on to http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12465279

As eco business is attracting investors’ attention all over the world, Bulgaria is increasingly attracting attention as a potential location for such “green” enterprises. Everything started with the “run of river” hydro power station on the Bistritsa River, near Katuntsi, southwestern Bulgaria, in 2006. The station now successfully reduces the amount of oil, gas and coal needed to generate electricity. Beginning of 2008 was marked by the start of negotiations for construction of the biggest solar station in Eastern Europe near Pazardzhik. It’s foreseen to occupy 2,000 square metres. The amount of investment in this particular project is 30 million leva.

Investors are getting more and more interested in eco business opportunities in Bulgaria. Is it going to be the next hottest investment?

Yekaterina

I am sure that many of you have heard about cultural differences that need to be taken into account when doing business with foreign partners. For instance, in Japan being late even for five minutes is considered bad manners. In France, on the other hand, arriving for business appointments 10-15 minutes after the scheduled time is not considered late and is therefore acceptable.

Is there such a thing as business etiquette in Bulgaria?

Yekaterina

I wonder how you choose your solicitor - is word of mouth the best way to go about it? I know some friends of mine want to find one and have some difficulty in getting one - in the region of Yambol. Any recommendations would be welcome.
Ani

Have you done your Christmas Shopping yet? Do you find it easier or harder than back home? I for one am always sitting on two extremes - I dislike the Christmas shopping craze but have never ever thought of skipping the gifts. So, what I do is try to be ready with my presets by late November - it saves me lots of time and trouble afterwards.
Ani

Do you miss any of the papers you used to read back at home and have you replaced them with others or have you switched to reading the news online? Some of the giants like IHT and the Guardian are to be found at major hotels but what do you do, if when there is none of them near you?

A quick survey of what the Brits here miss most in terms of food showed it’s … pickle. Runners up include beans, sauces and proper chips. Pickle is tops mostly because pickle in Bulgaria is very different and cannot replace the one most expats prefer. Here’s an idea for anyone dealing in imports. What do you say?
posted by Ani Ivanova

I came across this place quite accidentally and was surprised to see the variety of wine - local, new world, old world - on offer. For a nation where everyone it seems is keen on drinking home made rakiya these kind of places are still a bit unusual. To top it all, most of the wines were decently priced, by Western standards at least. The staff was able to provide some background information on the local producers. Wine tasting sessions are available at the shop, and so are wine accessories. Helped me solve my what-to-bring-to-the-host problem.
The shop, Vinopolis, is in Bacho Kiro St between Dondukov and Iskar St.
posted by Ani Ivanova

Is Bulgaria the right place to eat? I don’t mean the prices but the quality and authenticity of food. A wave is rising of culinary hot spots, not just restaurants offering good, ’slow’ food but supermarkets too: Sofia’s Elemag has made a point of its focus on fresh local produce and quality imports such as Italian pasta and salami, French cheese and Greek fish.
by Ani Ivanova