"Turnover - about $100 million." Aleś Mukhin spoke about business and earnings on "What? Where? When?"

50-year-old Aleś Mukhin is the owner of three "Crystal Owls" and the host of the Belarusian version of the intellectual game "What? Where? When?". But off-screen, he has been involved in entrepreneurship for many years.

Business with a turnover of $100 million

At various times, Mukhin managed a perfume company, headed the Belarusian chain of mobile phone stores "Evrosetka", and after completing cooperation with it in 2008, he moved to the "Caravan" company, where he now holds the position of CEO.

"Caravan" is engaged in supplying coffee and tea from both foreign and local producers to Belarusian stores.

Mukhin estimates the annual turnover of the entire group of companies associated with "Caravan" at approximately $100 million. The group includes other enterprises, including a large coffee production plant. The group also produces its own coffee under the Baristo brand, which is made in Belarus on Italian equipment from beans sourced from various countries around the world.

However, a large turnover does not mean corresponding profits. As Mukhin explains, competition in the market is so high that companies literally fight for every percentage of margin.

"Now people are fighting for two or three percent," he noted.

How much Mukhin earns from "What? Where? When?"

Mukhin named his salary as the CEO of "Caravan" as his main source of income, but he did not disclose its size. Instead, he told how much he receives for working on television.

In addition to participating in the Russian version of "What? Where? When?", Mukhin hosts the Belarusian TV club, where he also receives a salary.

"It's 1000-1500 Belarusian rubles. Well, $500, yes," he clarified.

According to him, "What? Where? When?" experts were never paid for the game. At most, some expenses, such as flights, could be reimbursed. Cash prizes for questions are still received by TV viewers who managed to defeat the experts.

True, until 2017, a cash prize was also given along with the "Crystal Owl". However, this practice later stopped. Mukhin suggests that this is related to "crisis phenomena."

He himself considers the intellectual game primarily a favorite hobby and an opportunity for self-realization. At the same time, he does not deny that media fame can bring participants additional opportunities. For example, invitations to host various events on a paid basis.

Offered $10 thousand for a "Crystal Owl"

Over the years of participating in "What? Where? When?", Aleś Mukhin has become the owner of three "Crystal Owls". The design of the prize has changed over the years.

"My very first owl appeared in 2004, back when everything was still, you know, Soviet-style – everything expensive and lavish. It's just such a beautiful, glazed, multi-colored owl, an unearthly beauty, in general. Well, and then came those, let's say, made of less ornate crystal," the expert recounts.

Mukhin says he never seriously tried to estimate the value of the prize. Only once was he offered about $10,000 for one of the awards. However, that was many years ago, and he is still unsure how serious the offer was.

Theoretically, Mukhin admits that he might put one of his three owls up for auction if he desperately needed money. But so far, no such necessity has arisen.

Why is erudition needed?

To the host's question about whether erudition helps in business, Aleś Mukhin answered:

"Being a team captain in 'What? Where? When?' and conducting a board of directors meeting for your firm—essentially, it's the same thing. And erudition helps you have authority among your subordinates, and they will run not to Petya to ask something, but to you. And you will understand the topic better. And if you understand the topic better, it means you have more influence. If you have more influence, it means more income and more benefit."

Mukhin is convinced that erudition is necessary not only for work and intellectual games, but also in personal life. And he finds a rather unexpected explanation for this.

"Firstly, girls immediately pay attention. This is very important, especially when you are still young and unmarried. And vice versa, guys also like smart girls. It's a stereotype that everyone only likes some blondes with blue eyes. I think that's nonsense," the expert reflects.

But the main benefit of erudition, in his opinion, is still elsewhere. Broad knowledge helps a person feel like an individual, and combined with intellect, it helps find solutions in complex life situations. From this, Mukhin believes, not only the person themselves benefits, but also their family, loved ones, and colleagues.

At the same time, Mukhin is confident that erudition will not disappear in new generations due to the development of the internet and artificial intelligence. According to him, every year young people come to the selections for the Belarusian TV club, whose level of knowledge pleasantly surprises him.

"It's far from a fact that the smartest ones run to us. But every February I feel such a bright joy, because people whom I didn't know before come, and I see that a third, or even half of them, are completely worthy of playing in the Belarusian TV club in terms of intellect. And they just need to be taught a little about it, which is what the editors working with experts do.

And if they can also overcome their natural shyness or excessive intelligence and learn to open their mouths in time during the minute of discussion – that's also a skill – then you are simply amazed at the depth of their knowledge.

So no, I think all these talks about everything being on the internet now, everything obtainable via ChatGPT, are too utopian. No, that's not the case. Creativity has not been canceled either."

To the host's question about how to distinguish a smart person from an unintelligent one, Mukhin suggested a simple method:

"Actually, there are a million such criteria. But it seems to me that if a person starts to praise himself and talk about how smart he is, it means he is not smart. That's such a simple express test."

What to read

During the interview, Mukhin was also asked to name three books that would help develop erudition.

Aleś first recommended literature about "What? Where? When?" itself – works by Boris Levin, Maxim Potashov, and Mikhail Lerner. And for those working in business, he advised paying attention to books by management specialist Ichak Adizes. He particularly highlighted the work "The Ideal Manager: Why It's Impossible to Be One?", in which the author explains the principles of managing people and organizations.

"These are simple truths that for some reason no one uses," the expert remarked.

The third piece of advice, however, turned out to be humorous. Mukhin suggested reading the entire Great Soviet Encyclopedia. Then, he said, you will definitely become smart.

He himself, despite his busy schedule in business, is not going to part with intellectual games. Mukhin admits that he participates in them not for money or awards. For him, each game becomes a new challenge, an opportunity to test himself and experience emotions that cannot be predicted in advance.

By the way, during the interview, the host decided to test the expert's quick wit and asked him a trick question:

"If you were born 12 years ago, how old would you be now?"

Mukhin thought for a moment but quickly replied: "Twelve."

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