Most college students find jobs in retail or food service, and occasionally they land a great internship. But Julia Plavnik, a Weinberg sophomore, created a job for herself.

Plavnik is employed at Povorot, a magazine she co-founded with her father and is currently running.

“It’s a Russian version of Car and Driver magazine,” says Plavnik, 20, when asked to describe her publication.

She developed the idea for a car magazine aimed at Chicago’s Russian community with her father, Dmitry Zaltsman. The magazine is based on Zaltsman’s radio show, also called Povorot, which means “turn” or “curve” in Russian, and is broadcast on the New Beginnings radio network (AM 1330 locally). Zaltsman announces the latest innovations in the automotive world and answers car-related questions from callers all over Chicago.

Plavnik, who is originally from Minsk, Belarus, says she wanted to target the show’s audience, but also appeal to the entire Russian community, even if it is not particularly interested in cars.

“It’s a car magazine for everyone,” Plavnik says. “Almost everyone drives a car these days. If the technical things like how to change a tire or drive on ice don’t interest them, the image, beauty and what a car represents in our society will.”

According to Plavnik, Povorot is unique because it adheres to a higher standard as a publication in the Russian community, which consists of about 640,000 people in the Chicago area.

“I challenged myself to create something for the Russian community with higher standards than anything else currently available,” Plavnik says.

While there are numerous newspapers for Chicago’s Russian-speaking population, there are no magazines readily available to the public. The magazine, which is in both Russian and English, is rapidly gaining popularity, Plavnik says. It boasts a circulation of 15,000 around Chicago since the first issue came out in early 2003.

“Povorot is original, engaging and interesting to read,” says Julia Gorelik, a Weinberg junior. “Julia should be very proud of all the hard work she put into it.”

Plavnik’s official positions at the magazine are marketing director and editorial assistant, but according to Plavnik, titles can be misleading.

“I do a lot more than (that),” she says.

This past summer Plavnik concentrated solely on the magazine’s production. She wrote all the feature articles, recruited advertisers, and oversaw the printing and design of the magazine. Plavnik even scheduled her classes around her time-consuming duties at the magazine.

Plavnik says her love of cars developed gradually. When she immigrated to Chicago from the former Soviet Union at age six, her father supported the family by working as a mechanic. He eventually went on to open several automotive shops in Chicago’s suburbs. She says she recalls working on advertising for his shops and helping him develop catchphrases in English.

“When he got the show on Russian radio, I listened to him because he was my dad, but then I actually started appreciating what he said,” Plavnik says. “I found myself becoming more interested in everything car-related.”

When her father suggested a magazine based on his popular show, Plavnik immediately jumped at the opportunity to develop the idea. She realized she loved to write while participating in a writing club at her high school in Arlington Heights.

Plavnik says she considered applying to Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism, but reconsidered in favor of economics, which is her current major. She says she has a greater interest in business, marketing management and advertising. Povorot allows her to combine her interests.

When asked if she has time for any other hobbies, Plavnik responds that she does not.

“This is it,” she says. “I can combine my love for writing, marketing and cars into this one thing. It’s great.”

As for Povorot’s future, Plavnik’s goals are clear: She wants to stay true to the magazine’s three major themes of buying, loving and driving a car. But she says she eventually wants to change its image. Povorot’s February issue features a spread of models posing with cars.

“The theme is a sexy fusion of car design and fashion,” she says. “The pictures are raw and risque. I want to focus more on the beauty of cars by highlighting the latest trends in fashion and design of cars.”

But Plavnik’s goals for her own future are not as well-defined.

“I might want to go into marketing management or advertising, but I don’t know for sure,” she says. “This magazine has opened my eyes to so many other things out there.”

Weinberg sophomore Elina Miller is a writer for PLAY. She can be reached at [email protected].