Marlen Akopov, the Project Exhibition's Director at the All-Russian Exhibition Center in Moscow (VVC), joined Russia Today to discuss the current and future activities of VVC.

Russia Today: It is 68 years since the VVC opened its doors. Can you tell us a little bit more of its history?

Marlen Akopov: As you know our organisation was founded in 1939 and many years have passed since then. Of course it was the showcase of the Soviet achievements in the economy. Actually it was presented in two ways, vertically and horizontally. Vertically means that industrial ministries presented their achievements and horizontally because each republic had its own pavillion and they presented their achievements to the lay public. Since then, as you know, in 1992 the VVC came into existence, the All-Russia Exhibition Center.

RT: Since the Soviet period thousands of people used to come here on a regular basis to see hundreds of exhibitions every single year. Now, 68 years later, how relevant is it as a showcase for Russian achievements today?

M.A.: Well, it still remains the showcase but in a little bit different way because with the new economic changes we are a shareholding company, though we are state-owned we are still a shareholding company and we have to earn some income. So we are organising exhibitions but we have the agreements with the ministries that ask us to organise some exhibitions and also we organise about 160 exhibitions per year and there are a lot of people coming to these exhibitions as visitors and there're are some of them who are really interested in business. So, actually, there are many changes that have taken place.

RT: As well as your role here within the VVC you are also in charge of promoting Russian exhibitions abroad as well. Internationally, how are Russian exhibitions doing at the moment?

M.A.: Our organisation, the VVC, has been involved in this kind of business since 2003, so it is just recently that we started to organise presentations abroad. But nevertheless we are participating in the bids organised by the government to hold Russian national exhibitions and very often we are successful in winning those bids. So, we organised Russian national exhibitions in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Canada, France, Germany and other countries as well.

RT: And also 68 years of the VVC – what is the future hopefully?

M.A.: I would like to cite what was recently said by a very prominent figure in exhibition business Mr Cliff Wallace, who is the Managing Director of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center and at the same time the Executive Vice-President of the UFI, the global association of exhibition industry, who said that there is a bright future for the exhibition business particularly in Russia. We wholly agree and share this statement.