Billionaire Russian tycoon brings Сноб (Snob) magazine to the U.S.

There is a certain virtue in calling a thing for what it is; it's certainly true for Snob magazine, which is aimed at the super-rich elites in Russia. Now, the billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, said to be the second-richest man in Russia, is planning to bring the Russion-language magazine to the U.S. He is prepared to spend $100 million on the project, says a wire story published by the Calgary Herald.

Prokhorov owns the New Jersey Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and recently bought the Barclays's Center in Brooklyn, where he is planning to move the team in 2012.

Part of the reason he sees potential in Brooklyn is that some 330,000 former residents of the Soviet Union live there.

A report in the Wall Street Journal says

Snob was the brainchild of Vladimir Yakovlev, who in 1989 founded "Kommersant," the first private daily business newspaper in Russia. After selling his publishing company in 1999, he took a decade-long sabbatical during which he says he began to perceive a need among affluent Russians living abroad for a way to connect and communicate about topics such as business, culture, food and sex.

He pitched the idea to Mr. Prokhorov, who invested $150 million in the launch in 2008 of a magazine and website targeting well-to-do professionals in Russia. About a year ago, Snob expanded to the U.K.

Most of the initial 20,000 circulation will be sold for $8 a copy in the New York area at Barnes & Noble stores, though it will also be available in other cities including Chicago, Boston and San Francisco. Executives said they have no doubts that Snob will catch on quickly given its already significant Web audience among New Yorkers.

"In New York, it's really difficult to walk for more than five minutes without hearing Russian," Ms. Gessen said.

 It's not known if the magazine will be made available in Canada.