LLC Brand Roomio was founded in 2018 in Kharkiv, but we received detailed information about it from Lviv. Why so? About this — in the story of its co-owner, Volodymyr Mysyk.

– From the very first months, our company with Artem Svirskyi began to develop actively. We immediately took on complex projects, implementing “turnkey” custom orders with a small team.

We ourselves had to meticulously dive into every detail of the process — from the first communication with clients to project delivery. This approach, philosophy, and the values on which we built our furniture business were embraced by our employees, resulting in the formation of a family-like, friendly, and qualified team, which by the beginning of the war already numbered seventy people.

Humanity in relationships — between managers and the team, and among employees themselves, mutual respect, Artem’s and my concern for the needs — I would not say subordinates — but colleagues in our common work, became a daily norm in the company, a team atmosphere that strengthened year after year.

It was precisely the concern, first of all, for the safety of employees and their families that became the driving force for relocating the company to the west of the country. We were welcomed by the Lviv community. Near the premises rented for production, we began to build a dormitory for accommodation, because although not the entire Kharkiv team gathered in the new location, the majority did. At that time, the cohesion and unity of the team became even more evident: we built together, lived with our families together, ate together, and restored production together.

– Did you manage to fully restore it?

– More than that. Thanks to such team perseverance, the first business success was not long in coming: we received an order from abroad. From Denmark. It was implemented together with Ukrainian designer-architect Kostiantyn Matrosov. We furnished a private apartment. And although it was the first international project, it was completed in a short time and with the quality that fully satisfied the client.

That European start turned out to be successful. The next project was implemented in Lisbon, and then, as they say, it went like clockwork: France, Germany, Slovakia, Poland, Spain.

– How did you manage to attract such effective attention to the company?

– We have always spoken about ourselves boldly and loudly, have always been open and honest with clients and partners, striving to ensure that as many people as possible could hear, read, and see about us, about our furniture capabilities in the media, on the most popular online platforms. Participation in international exhibitions also gave tangible results — by the way, not without the help of UAFM.

– Usually, companies that receive international orders face difficulties at the final stage, when it comes time to install at the client’s location what was manufactured and delivered from Ukraine. The reason is no secret. How do you handle it?

– The answer is simple: we look for reliable partners abroad. But finding reliable ones is not easy, because we have strict and demanding criteria that those people we involve in the work must meet, so we carefully check in advance whether they can provide the level of service and support that we declare.

– Do you prefer private or commercial orders?

– We prefer profitable orders. Among those implemented are private apartments, villas, restaurants, and other commercial sites. The factor of project complexity has long ceased to be significant for us.

– Have you managed to restore the company staff to pre-war numbers?

– No, although we have somewhat replenished with local human resources. Now we have about forty employees, and that is enough to handle the current production volumes, although they are not small. But we have learned to optimize production processes so that we can handle significant workloads with a relatively small team. In addition, the company has never suffered from staff turnover — precisely thanks to the atmosphere of goodwill in the team, which I have already mentioned. So people work with us for a long time and with satisfaction. This primarily concerns those who have been with us since the company’s founding.

– Do you recruit already highly qualified employees, or train them in the process?

– More often we train. But even experienced specialists need training and constant improvement, because each custom project we take on is unique in some way, different from those already completed, and therefore requires new approaches, technologies, and thus new knowledge and creativity in decision-making.

– Which direction of company development is currently the most relevant?

– Expansion, scaling up in the European market. Both the orders we are currently implementing there and those that are pending and already agreed upon are proof that this year’s plans are being successfully fulfilled.

– When peace comes to the country, will there be a reverse relocation?

– Unfortunately, the expected peace is unlikely to come in the near future, so I will not guess ahead. But I can say for sure that the production here will remain: too many funds, efforts, and hopes have been invested in it. We have been well received here, we have settled in, gained acquaintances and business connections, and are advantageously close to the European border. But in our native Kharkiv, as well as in other regions of the country and abroad, most likely, we will have our branches.