This article appeared in the May 23, 2003 Jewish Advocate.

Grand opening caps family’s hard road to success

By Susie Davidson

Advocate Correspondent

Following a twelve-year wait, the Drogobetsky family of Brookline left Russia for the US, just three days shy of the nuclear plant disaster in nearby Cherynobyl. Yesterday, daughter Zhanna unveiled her newly-renovated, 7,000 square-foot Italian Design Lighting on 81 Boylston St., and over the month of June, Yana's Bambini Design will open across the street at 82 Boylston. Zhanna’s opening featured celebrity chef Dante Magistreri from the acclaimed Blu, and catering from Tosca. It took a long time, and a lot of hard work, resourcefulness and perseverance, to get there.

The Drogobetskys arrived in Manhattan in 1986, Russian Jewish refugees who spoke little to no English and settled in a Manhattan welfare hotel before moving to Section 8 housing in Brookline. They were assisted in Temple Israel's New American Program by, among others, Rabbi Ronne Freedman and management consultant and Temple member Lynn Jeffrey, who helped the family set up a day care center for children in their home, with her 13-month-old daughter their first client. Day care centers in Newton and Andover followed. "Their grandmother served as cook and both young daughters provided assistant teaching skills where their school schedules would allow," said Cambridge-based publicist Alicia Gordon.

"Whatever their entrepreneurial pursuit, they modeled after no one and set their own standards," said Jeffrey. "Each member of the family works to a unique standard of integrity."

In the meantime, father Arkady became an accredited electrician. Mother Irina had been pursuing business networking; her furniture shopping in the early 1990s led to a partnership in a Watertown furniture business which she renamed Italian Interiors. Within six months, she had doubled the store's struggling sales margin. Selling her share of the day care operation, she bought out her partner and continues to offer fine contemporary home furnishings there today.

As support from the Brookline community and Temple Israel members continued, Zhanna acquired marketing experience working with Kraft Foods, Gillette, and John Hancock while earning a degree in business administration at Northeastern. Following her 1999 graduation, she launched Italian Design in the basement of 82 Boylston St.; a year later, a street level site across the street became available. Business doubled; Arkady’s electrical expertise helped Zhanna to add Italian Design Lighting.

Her enthusiasm and resolve has brought sophisticated services to the enterprise, including Italian architect Giorgio Sorressi. "In his first US project, Sorressi initially transformed the first floor interior into a sleek contemporary showroom with splashes of color and modern furniture," said Gordon. Additional furnishing, many exclusives for the store, have included Binova kitchens, Cattelani and Smith lighting, Dema, who was responsible for designing all stores for Giorgio Armani, Fasem, Trend, and the lighting of Ingo Maurer. "Maurer is one of the design world's true luminaries, whose designs allow light bulbs to literally take wing," said Gordon.

Yana’s Bambini will reflect her elementary education skills with exclusive and contemporary children's home design, accessories and clothing.

The family's ties to Temple Israel continue and they have supported Israeli causes including the National Jewish Fund’s tree planting projects, an ambulance-providing effort, and various CJP projects. "We saw very simple shows of kindness, generosity, and business acumen in our early days at Temple Israel and as new arrivals in Brookline," said Zhanna. "As our business grew, many members of the Temple, as well as the community, looked to Italian Design for their homes and businesses; it has been gratifying to see their lives evolve as we furnish and often design their living and working spaces."

Gordon sees the joint venture as the culmination of years of hard and disciplined effort. “It proves that family, children, furniture and the art of life go hand in hand and full circle in the Drogobetsky family of Brookline," she said.