In the words of Kristina Nikolaienko: “Women should not be afraid to enter heavy industry”

Kristina Nikolaienko is a 28-year-old entrepreneur from Ukraine, operating a metalwork and furniture manufacturing business. Photo: Courtesy of Kristina Nikolaienko

Kristina Nikolaienko (28), co-founder of the Zalizo enterprise from the frontline city of Mykolaiv, calls on women to run businesses in heavy industry and process manufacturing. Kristina is among the women entrepreneurs participating in the Women's Entrepreneurship EXPO 2024. Despite the danger and challenges of wartime, she confidently operates the metalwork and furniture manufacturing business, successfully scaling it and entering new markets.

“The idea to start our venture emerged when my mother was working as a hired director at a furniture company. There, she faced discrimination as a woman, including unfair wages and working terms, and being excluded from important events and decision-making processes.

During that time, I studied abroad at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, where I was introduced to a completely different set of values and an understanding of how things should be.

My mother and I made our first contribution by opening a small workshop equipped with manual machines, where only two people worked.

About five years ago, the country underwent a reform of secondary education demanding specific furniture for educational institutions. As there were few options available on the market, we decided to fill this niche.

Initially, we faced challenges due to limited funding. Then, the pandemic hit us unexpectedly, causing significant disruptions in logistics and material procurement, and overall, order volumes decreased as schools shifted to distance learning. However, we still had a stable client base that we continued to serve during that time.

Our achievement is the steady and anticipated growth of the enterprise. Over the past five years, we have transformed from a small workshop into a business covering an area of 500 m², equipped with fully automated machinery. We acquired some of this equipment using our funds or loans, while others were obtained through grants. Currently, we have 15 permanent employees. Additionally, we have entered a new sales market and started collaborating with a large retail chain, Epicentr.

The company operates in a frontline city. At the onset of the full-scale Russian invasion, we sent our team home for safety. However, we continued to support everyone by paying salaries and fulfilling orders with those colleagues who were able to work. We promptly joined the resistance, with our welders crafting anti-tank hedgehogs. Simultaneously, we adapted to the new circumstances. Certain markets became inaccessible to us, leading to a decline in demand for our main product: school furniture.

Before the full-scale invasion, I took a course in grant writing. Thanks to this, we secured funding for all our certifications and received a grant to purchase a plasma cutter machine.

Our company specializes in metalworking and offers a diverse product line. With no demand for school furniture, we shifted our focus to producing metal stoves for heating, as we possess all the necessary equipment.

Last winter, we manufactured and delivered such stoves to deoccupied villages and affected communities in the Mykolaiv region. We collaborated with a Canadian philanthropist who provided funding. Our company handled production and communicated with communities such as Snihurivska and Shevchenkivska, distributing the stoves to people who had been forced to live in basements, sheds, and partially destroyed homes due to shelling.

We recently registered as a UN supplier. We can now participate in international tenders and have already completed two orders.

Despite my solid education, I continue to gain new insights each year. During the EXPO 2024 boot camp, I attended a marketing lecture on a topic I knew well but discovered valuable insights on handling negative feedback. While working in groups, I encountered another participant who shared ideas about additional products that can be made from metal. I appreciate these initiatives because they allow me to refresh my knowledge on relevant topics, which can benefit the future development of my business. Additionally, they provide opportunities for new connections and networking.

It's no secret that business is about money. However, in the context of war and witnessing the tragic events around me, I don't want my focus to be solely on profit. The war took off the masks and revealed the true balance of good and evil in the world. The social burden on business is a perspective. Even a small business can create jobs, provide training, engage in charitable activities, and carry out social initiatives.

My big dream is to export goods and bring money into Ukraine. We can produce serial products in large volumes quickly and with high quality. We manufacture a minimum of 5,000 units per year, and our record for producing typical products in a single month is 2,500. We plan to expand our space and implement Lean management practices along with conveyor production to minimize waste.

Don’t hesitate to enter the heavy industry and start businesses that involve more than one person. I love clothing and jewelry, but I also know how capable women are in running processing plants. All technologies can be understood and learned, even without prior practical experience.”

Launched in 2021, the Women’s Entrepreneurship EXPO is a unique partnership platform to promote women’s entrepreneurship ecosystem building in the Europe and Central Asia region. EXPO provides an interactive space for women entrepreneurs, investors, and private sector representatives for networking and collaboration, peer learning, ideas generation, capacity building, and business development. EXPO 2024 is organized by the UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia in partnership with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Yıldız Holding as part of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Accelerator.