Thank You From Ukrainian Entrepreneurs

Earlier this year we shared the story of Mykhaylo and his family from Ukraine. Mykhaylo and his wife Katerina were both successful entrepreneurs before the Russian invasion – Mykhaylo was a co-founder of one of the leading peanut butter manufacturers and his wife Katerina built from scratch her fashion business, Balcony Garment 
 
Mykhaylo and his family have remained in Kyiv since the invasion began, coordinating food and medical distribution and helping people to evacuate from Kyiv. In collaboration with several other entrepreneurs in the area, the couple set up a website where people can support their efforts by donating: http://donation.maslotom.com/en/
 
The team is made up of volunteers and 100% of the donations go towards supporting Kyiv’s residents, with nothing spent on admin, overheads or CEO wages.

Mykhaylo has recently been in touch with Green Bean Studios and would like to share his gratitude for everyone who has supported them and donated so far, which has enabled them to continue to provide this vital service for the people of Kyiv.

Not satisfied with simply asking for donations, the entrepreneurial couple have worked around the clock for two months, alongside three designers and three manufacturers, to launch a brand new line of merchandise which is available to purchase and dispatch worldwide. All the profits raised from this project will go to Ukraine's Armed Forces.

 You can browse their range and purchase here: maslotom.com/en/merch

Mykhaylo has also shared some sad news with us which brings the harsh reality of the situation in Ukraine home. One of Mykhaylo’s close friends, Ivan (pictured below), died defending Kharkiv. His funeral took place recently and Mykhaylo shared with us the tragedy of seeing a young man of the same age as himself taken so soon. Mykhaylo takes some comfort by knowing his friend is now at peace.

Despite the ongoing situation and devastation in Kyiv, Mykhaylo and Katerina continue to run their businesses with passion and integrity. New times have given birth to new inspiration and opportunities for them and they started two new projects: a collection of merchandise with modern Ukrainian symbols and customised versions of peanut butter: 

There is renewed hope as life is slowly coming back to the streets of Kyiv, Lviv, and the other cities of Ukraine. Mykhaylo, along with many other Ukrainians, strongly believes their victory is getting closer and peace can be restored once more to their nation.
 
How can you get involved?

Donate here or if you’re an entrepreneur wanting to directly support Mykhaylo and his team – we want to hear from you so please email us at hello@greenbeanstudios.co.uk  ​