Early Life
Sergei Galitsky was born Sergey Nikolayevich Arutyunyan on August 14, 1967, in Lazarevskoye, a suburb of Sochi, Russia. His mother was Russian and his father was Russian-Armenian. He served in the Soviet army from 1985 to 1987. Galitsky adopted his wife's surname later in life.
Rise to Success
Galitsky's career began in 1989 when he started working in a commercial bank in Krasnodar. He graduated from the Economics faculty of Kuban State University in 1993. His entrepreneurial journey took off in 1994 with the founding of Transasia, a wholesale trading company. In 1995, he established Tander, which would become the foundation for Magnit. In 1998, Galitsky opened the first grocery store under the name Magnit in Krasnodar. He switched to retail, creating the largest network by the number of stores in Russia. In 2006, the company conducted its IPO, and the company was valued at $1.9 billion. Galitsky sold a 29.1% stake in Magnit to Russian bank VTB for 138 billion rubles in 2018. Galitsky entered the wine business in 2019.
Key Business Strategies
Galitsky's business strategies centered around operational efficiency and data-driven decision-making. His focus on "Always Low Prices" was inspired by Walmart. The company expanded rapidly, focusing on convenience stores and hypermarkets. Galitsky was known for incorporating data-driven strategies into the company's operations. He focused on building a large network of stores across Russia.
Philanthropy
Galitsky has shown a dedication to sports, founding FC Krasnodar and investing heavily in its infrastructure, including a stadium and academy. He invested $70 million on a park near his soccer stadium.
