The descendant of a merchant family was an obedient son. To continue the family business, he had to master new technologies. As a result, it was he who became the champion of progress.
It so happened that the people are wary of the merchant people. If at the counter is not an inveterate swindler, then certainly a curmudgeon and a retrograde. The businessmen of the past gave the reason for such bad judgments themselves. However, there were amazing people among them. One of these will be discussed.
Childhood
At the very beginning of the 19th century. the merchant Semyon Zimin from Pavlovsky Posad acquired a plot of land in the Moscow region from a landowner. There he created a weaving factory, which supplied his shop with silk scarves and shawls. Soon, the authorities became interested: where did such a noble product come from? When the whole truth became clear, the owner of the underground workshop was forgiven, the products were too good. The cunning man secured his heir a place in the 3rd guild of the Bogorodsk merchants, which was very good.
The grandson of the enterprising Semyon Ivan was born in 1818. He did not find the period when the old man was at odds with the law. Big money allowed grandfather to remove dark spots from his biography. Now he honestly worked for the welfare of the family, and his sons helped him. Vanya was lucky - he was the firstborn of Nikita, the eldest son of a successful adventurer. From an early age, the boy was taught that it would be his duty to increase the wealth of the family, making a contribution to the material well-being of the family. In 1840, after the death of the priest, Nikita became the owner of the weaving factory and retail outlets.
Fathers and Sons
The heir was not satisfied with the production capacity of the enterprise. He increased the number of machines and hired more workers. After 3 years, under his management, the business began to bring more than 30 thousand rubles in silver in annual income, and he himself became an honorary citizen of Pavlov Posad. Nikita was proud of himself and boasted of his successes to his wife and son. The latter allowed himself to ask why the parent would not purchase such a machine that works instead of a weaver. Vanya is still small, stupid.
The guy himself did not think so. He was the first assistant to his father, often accompanied him on business trips. He received his education on his own. Everything new attracted him, he listened with enthusiasm to stories about new technologies often flavored with folk art, and then imagined how the legendary novelties would have earned at their factory. The senior members of the family soon appreciated the independence of the young man in an unusual way - they found him a bride, Fedosya Kononova. She was equal to her future husband, because after the wedding, the newlyweds quickly found a common language and healed together. In the marriage were born sons Leonty and Gregory, daughters Maria and Praskovya.
Experiments on the wasteland
Zimin Sr. hid, behind feigned severity, admiration for the intellect of his son and joy for the fact that he was ready to make a career in the field of trade and production. When his health deteriorated, he transferred all his property to his Vanyusha. The old man told his matured son that he had complete confidence in him, if he was sure of the need to modernize the equipment, let him change. Ivan was incredibly happy.
Our hero was brought up in a patriarchal tradition, so he did not shock the parent with an immediate transformation of production. Ivan Zimin chose the recently acquired vacant lot near the Drezna railway station as the place for the implementation of the most daring plans. The connoisseur of progress noticed that the places there are swampy, which means they are rich in peat. This natural fuel was supposed to reduce the cost of his project. Soon, the son pleased his father with good news - they have another weaving and spinning mill.
Master
Ivan Nikitich became the full owner in 1866 after the death of his daddy. Now he was able, without looking back at the opinion of the old man, to change the routine. The following year, the merchant presented the products of his factories at the international exhibition in Paris. The jury awarded the silk luxury from distant Russia with a bronze medal. In order to have something to brag about, the new owner bought advanced equipment for the already existing factories and built several new factories with villages for workers at them.
Ivan Zimin decided to optimize the production process not only by replacing equipment, but also by a new management principle. In 1868, he combined all of his production facilities into a company that received the name "Zuevskaya manufactory I. N. Zimin". The death of his wife in 1871 was a blow to the well-known industrialist's prosperous life. Having grieved, the widower decided not to put an end to his personal life. Soon he led young Evdokia Kuzmina down the aisle. Despite the gossip, the couple were happy. They became the parents of three sons Ivan, Sergei and Alexander and daughter Lyudmila.
The rich man's legacy
The profitable business of Ivan Zimin attracted investments from outside, the sons were growing up as ambitious as their daddy. The sole proprietor understood that only a change in management approach could strengthen his business. In 1884 the company was transformed into a share partnership. Our hero himself wrote a charter for him.
In 1887 Ivan Zimin died. His children now listened in everything to the opinion of Ivan Ivanovich. Not being the eldest son, this guy inherited a business acumen from his father. In 1917, after a family council, he voluntarily handed over all the property of the Soviet government and, together with his relatives, went abroad.
