From idea to own business: FUIB announced 22 winners of the 3rd season of the educational grant program "Live towards"

The final pitching of the 3rd season of the educational grant program for the development of veteran businesses "Live towards", initiated by FUIB Bank in partnership with Future Development Agency and KSE Graduate Business School, took place in Kyiv. Following the results of the two-day presentations, 22 veteran teams received grant funding totaling 15 million hryvnias to open or scale their own business.

The “Live towards” program is an initiative to integrate veterans into civilian life through entrepreneurship. We received 318 applications for participation in the third season, and 40 teams completed business training.

Two days of intensive pitching: from startups to experienced businesses

The final was divided into two days – one for beginners, the other for experienced businesses, which allowed for the most effective assessment of the potential of each project depending on its stage of development.

On the first day, startup teams that have been operating for less than 6 months or have only developed a prototype of a product or service presented their ideas. The winners of this category received grants in the amount of UAH 500,000.

Among the winning startups:

• Yevtushenko Andriy Volodymyrovych, ApiMedikum (treatment of bee diseases)
• Hulak Artem Vasilyovych, "Ovocheva Khata" (growing fresh vegetables)
• Zosimova Anastasia Yaroslavivna, cafe "Zillya" (healthy food)
• Pylypenko Ilya Anatolyovych, "Kolovorot" (wake park, inclusive space on the water)
• Shatkun Igor Vitaliyovych, VDOMA (garden center)
• Khomenko Roman Volodymyrovych, educational center "Vistria"
• Chykin Igor Volodymyrovych, mobile cleaning agency
• Savolov Stanislav Serhiyovych, production of handmade desserts "beard.bakery"
• Yakovlev Denis Valeriyovych, Varta smaku (semi-finished products)
• Kramarenko Sergey Vitaliyovych, coffee shops "BLACK BEANS"

The second day was dedicated to teams that already have more than a year of entrepreneurial experience and need additional funding to scale.

Funding in the amount of 500 thousand hryvnias was received by 4 winners:

• Rosolovsky Mykhailo Romanovych, "Opilski Oleii"
• Repik Artem Oleksandrovych, construction of modular houses
• Su Mykyta Pinovych, floristry studio "Flower Philosophy"
• Kostyuk Valeriy Mykolayovych, veteran brand of bed linen and home textiles

And 8 more businesses received grants of 1 million hryvnia each:

• Mantsuk Igor Oleksandrovych, family poultry farm
• Permyakov Viktor Vasilyovich, PerepilochkaBRO! (quail farm)
• Koptyev Petro Mykolayovych, “Petra’s Forge”
• Shpatsenko Viktor Viktorovych, own production of metal structures for the energy sector
• Moiseyenko Ruslan Volodymyrovych, craft store “Maisternya”
• Voytiv Oleg Romanovych, “Monument Workshop: Forever with Love”
• Grigoriev Vitaly Igorovych, virtual reality space “SKY VR”
• Paramushak Roman Igorovych, photo studio “Spalakh” 

Not just financing

The program's unique feature is the synergy of financial support and business education. Participants underwent intensive training from KSE Graduate Business School, where they tested their ideas and prepared viable business plans.

"As a bank manager, I know well: money is important at the start of a business, but knowledge, support, and the right environment are often crucial. They are what help you avoid mistakes, see opportunities, and move forward even in difficult times. That is why we pay so much attention to training and supporting program participants. The FUIB team is immensely proud that we are implementing the educational grant program "Live towards" for the third time, helping veterans and defenders to obtain business education and obtain financing for their own business,"— said Serhiy Chernenko, Chairman of the Board of FUIB Bank.

The winners of the program were selected by an expert jury, which included specialists from various business sectors:

• Viktor Kharkovets, Director of the Department of Microcrediting for Small Businesses, FUIB
• Valentyna Sakhno, Head of KSE Graduate Businnes school
• Ihor Arbatov, Chairman of the Board of Future Development Agency
• Maksym Stukalo, Participant of Season 2 of "Live towards", Owner of "Mandry in UA"
• Serhiy Kornylyuk, Expert in Strategic Consulting and Fundraising
• Volodymyr Shevchenko, Participant of Season 2 of "Live towards", Owner of "Veterano Coffee" Coffee Shops
• Mykhailo Bogatyr, CEO of ML "DILA"

The moderators of the event were:

• Viktoriya Garkusha, head of the veterans integration platform “Live towards”;
• Maksym Yermokhin, officer, veteran, participant of the Invictus Games and Warrior Games, coach and mentor.

Ahead for all the winners of the 3rd season is a new stage: mentoring support, launching and scaling businesses.

You can learn more about this year's winners, support their businesses, and follow the platform's news in the Telegram channel “Live towards”. Join us and step towards each other with us! 

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