(16 Dec 2004) SHOTLIST
Moscow - 15 Dec 2004
1. Wide shot pan Mega mall
2. Wide shot shoppers inside mall
3. Close up shoppers
4. Wide shot store opening ceremony
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Head of Ikea's Russian Operations, Lennart Dahlgren
"It's not always easy to find the speaking terms between an international company and the Russian authorities."
Moscow - 10 Dec 2004
6. Mid shot entrance, people reading sign that Mega will not open
7. Close up sign saying Mega will welcome you when authorities will permit
8. Mid shot girl trying to enter
Moscow - 15 Dec 2004
9. SOUNDBITE (Russian), Khimki Mayor, Vladimir Strelchenko
"I think I take this bribe with pleasure for the (Khimki) district, with pleasure, it will be done officially and an official report will be presented to Ikea on how this money will be spent. For such a bribe, I could only greatly thank you in the name of the district. I would also like to add that for such a large company as Ikea, maybe (it can pay to us) the same amount every year."
10. Wide shot pan Mega
Moscow - 14 Dec 2004
11. Wide shot trading floor at Troika Dialogue brokerage in Moscow
12. Close up traders
13. SOUNBITE (English) Chief analyst, James Fenkner
"Russia has come an extremely long way in the last 13-14 years, but does it have further to go - absolutely. And I think the question is always for investors is not to get too far ahead of themselves or to be too scared to come here and to invest. But we would argue that there are great opportunities still in Russia, in retail especially, but it's going to be a lot of work before Russia becomes exactly like it is, for example, in Sweden."
Moscow - 10 Dec 2004
14. Close up sales people in shop zoom out to closed entrance
STORYLINE
Swedish furniture giant Ikea belatedly opened a massive new mall outside Moscow on Wednesday after appealing for support from the
regional governor to end an acrimonious dispute that included accusations of lying and suggestions of bribe-seeking.
Ikea opened its 230-thousand-square metre (two and a half (M) million-square foot) Mega mall in the Moscow suburb of Khimki after receiving official permission in a document signed on Tuesday.
The company had appealed to Moscow region Governor Boris Gromov a day earlier in a bid to clear the way for the opening and was pleased with the "quick and supportive" response from his office, a spokesperson said.
The opening celebration for Ikea's new Mega mall planned for Friday was scuttled after a regional official said a nearby underground gas pipeline was a safety hazard.
In a statement posted on Tuesday on its Web site, the Moscow regional government emphasised that Ikea had not yet received permission to use the centre and said that it had failed to move the gas pipeline, despite requests in November.
Ikea, however, said the pipeline was never a problem before and that its suggestions for making it safer had been ignored.
Ikea management hinted in recent interviews that a policy of not giving bribes was slowing work in Russia.
The company spokesperson said an agreement to build a structure to further secure the underground pipeline had been signed and that work would start Thursday and be completed in about a week.
The agreement came after Gromov's response and a meeting with Khimki officials.
Speaking to media on Wednesday, the head of Ikea's Russian operations affirmed what he said was an earlier pledge by the company
to donate one (M) million US dollars for the development of children's sports in Khimki.
retail boom.
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