From training to business expansion: How Resilience Hubs in the Mykolaiv region help bring business ideas to life
Oksana Tsoi owns a cosy cafe in Novyi Buh, in the Mykolaiv region. She is one of over a hundred participants in a project that helps local residents acquire new vocational skills. Currently, at the Novyi Buh Resilience Hub The Heart of the Community, anyone can join training sessions to learn a new profession. Oksana chose a course on the fundamentals of making marshmallow.
The new profession will help her develop her small business and treat Novyi Buh residents to craft confectionery.
“I realised that I truly enjoy confectionery, and I want to develop in this direction. I plan to add a pastry display case to the cafe so that people can choose desserts along with their main courses,” the entrepreneur shares.
The woman was born and spent most of her life in Novyi Buh. A few years before the start of the full-scale invasion, she moved to Kyiv, and later lived in Poland. In 2022, Oksana returned to her hometown.
She had long dreamed of her own business – ever since her first job at a small cafe.
“My first job was in a small, cosy cafe, and since then I have dreamed of having my own business. My subsequent jobs were to save up money and eventually make this dream a reality,” says Oksana Tsoi.
In 2023, the dream turned into Soul Cafe. Initially, the venue was three times smaller, but the space was gradually expanded. Oksana set up a kitchen and began improving the menu. She has now set her sights on dessert production as her next goal.
“I had already worked with desserts, so I wanted to expand my professional skills and try a new direction. I was interested in gaining practical knowledge specifically from someone who has successful experience in this field,” she continues.
So when the Rokada team launched the new course, the woman applied immediately.
“I am very grateful for the opportunity to take this course. It was especially valuable that everything was highly practical: we could test things out immediately, ask questions, and receive advice. Now, I want to apply this knowledge and gradually develop this new direction in the cafe,” Oksana says.
The professional courses held at the Heart of the Community Resilience Hubs in Novyi Buh, Voznesensk, and Snihurivka, within the Mykolaiv region, help local residents acquire new vocational skills, develop their competencies, and find opportunities for employment or starting and expanding entrepreneurial initiatives.
regional coordinator of Rokada in the Mykolaiv region
“For nearly a year, a wide variety of professional courses have been held at the Resilience Hubs, helping community members acquire new skills and find new avenues for self-realisation. The areas of training vary – from culinary and confectionery arts to sewing, digital literacy, and other professions that are relevant both to the people and the needs of the community. It is vital for us that everyone can find an opportunity for professional development, gain new competencies, and use them for future employment or for starting and growing their own business.”
The next step for entrepreneur Oksana Tsoi will be to participate in a grant competition organised by the foundation. Following the courses, each participant can develop their own business idea, submit it to the competition, and secure a grant of up to 100,000 hryvnias for its implementation.
For the woman, this support will open up the opportunity to set up a separate production unit and create a pastry display case.
“I want these sweets to be of truly high quality. It is important to me that our cafe is geared towards children and parents, so I want to take a responsible approach to what we offer our guests,” Oksana Tsoi concludes.
The project Building Resilience and Assisting Vulnerable Individuals and Entities in Southern Ukraine (BRAVE) is implemented by the Rokada Charitable Foundation with financial support from the German government through AWO International and Aktion Deutschland Hilft.
