Mashynets Dmytro Oleksandrovych, 37 years

My name is Dmytro Mashynets, and today I am an entrepreneur in the automotive business and the founder of «Agent Trade», a company I have been growing for more than 16 years. I live in Kyiv and build business as a system — with processes, accountability, and a team capable of working without constant hands-on management.

For me, entrepreneurship is not a series of decisions made «here and now», but a long game in which structure, discipline, and people play the key roles. My journey began very simply. At 20-21, I left my salaried job and opened a small auto repair shop in a garage. A mechanic I invited to join the team and I worked together, gradually starting to serve our first customers. That small garage was where the story began of a business that later grew into a network of auto repair shops and several related areas of the automotive business.

Over the years, I realized one important thing: a business cannot rely solely on its owner. So I invested a significant amount of time in building a system — an organizational structure, management processes, financial controls, and a strong team. My goal was always not just to grow the company, but to make it resilient. The full-scale war became a turning point for me.

I went to serve, and that experience profoundly changed how I see life, work, and responsibility. Before the war, like many entrepreneurs, I was focused on goals associated with comfort and quality of life: expensive things, travel, cars, beautiful places. After serving, those priorities changed dramatically. Much simpler but more fundamental things came first — the lives of children, the team, people, and the processes we create. I became convinced that sooner or later the war will end, but the companies that preserve their key people and their ability to operate will be the ones to succeed. Serving also changed me as a leader. I became much more demanding and firm in making management decisions.

In the past, I often tried to be too accommodating: I took a long time to decide to let people go, felt sorry for them, and sometimes turned a blind eye to inefficiency. Today, I see it differently. When you realize how limited time and resources are, you start valuing efficiency much more. You cannot spend energy on things or people that do not deliver results.

Returning to civilian life was a challenge in its own right. After experiencing the front line, the difference in people's levels of motivation is very noticeable. In military service, there is no need to explain why it is important to complete a task — everyone understands the cost of responsibility. In business, by contrast, this is often exactly what you have to work on: building a culture of accountability and initiative. At the same time, I try to make sure my business benefits people beyond its commercial activities. One principle I introduced at the company is helping the military. If a vehicle comes to us that is actively used on the front line to carry out combat missions, we repair it free of charge. This is not a separate charitable program or a marketing story - it is an internal rule. If a vehicle has been damaged by shrapnel and is needed at the front, we must do everything we can to get it back in service as quickly as possible.

I understand that the automotive business is a chapter I have largely completed. My task now is to prepare people who can manage this area without my constant involvement. I am already working on handing over management to two leaders I am developing within the company. As for my personal sense of happiness, it has always been connected with freedom — financial and physical. I felt it most strongly in 2019-2021, when the business was operating as a well-tuned system, the team was self-sufficient, and I could afford to travel and live without being constantly tied to operational tasks.

Today, I would not yet call myself a completely happy person. After serving, I left one kind of unfreedom — military service — but felt that I had entered another: entrepreneurship. Business constantly demands attention, decisions, and accountability. But I know very well what I am striving for. For me, true happiness is freedom. The ability sometimes to turn off my phones, disconnect from the stream of tasks, and simply spend time with myself and my family. These are simple things, but today they are what I value most.

How did the business idea come about?

The business idea did not emerge as a «brilliant concept», but as a response to customer demand. After I left my job, customers started calling me and asking what they should do next — they did not want to be serviced «by a company»; they wanted to work specifically with me.

I started with simple things: helping people choose and inspect cars, then I rented a garage and invited another specialist to work there. Gradually, the whole ecosystem «got rolling» from that garage: a network of auto repair shops, car imports, buying and selling, detailing studios, automotive security studios, and vehicle upgrades. In effect, customer needs became the driver of expansion — customers «suggested» which services they needed, and I built new business areas around them.

What key skills helped you launch your business?

For me, the foundation for growth is a combination of responsibility, persistence, and a need for freedom. I am highly responsible: it is important to me to see a job through to the end and make sure the customer is satisfied, even if that means giving up some profit today. I am persistent: if I cannot find a solution right away, I will find one eventually.

One skill I «developed» through experience is systems thinking in management: finance, management accounting, process documentation, and the implementation of control tools. When I began to see the business not just through «hands-on work», but through numbers, processes, and accountability, management changed qualitatively.

What were the 3 most difficult challenges you overcame in the early years?

At the start, there were three key challenges. First — financing: at 20–21, I had no credit history or banking options, so I had to buy equipment using loans from acquaintances and friends. Second — a lack of people-management skills: I had somehow learned to manage myself, but not to build a team, assign tasks, or maintain discipline. Third — a lack of expertise in management and marketing, as well as a lack of a strong network that could advise me on how to build a system. We only began doing marketing in earnest in 2017–2018; before then, we had a website and a Facebook page, but no systematic marketing.

What crises has your business faced, and how did you overcome them?

My business has gone through the same crises that have generally formed the backdrop for Ukrainian entrepreneurship. These include: 

• sharp exchange-rate fluctuations (especially in 2014);
• the COVID-19 pandemic;
• the full-scale war.

During COVID-19, auto repair shops were technically allowed to operate, but demand fell sharply because people used their cars much less.

During the full-scale war, there was no single major problem — rather, it was a series of ongoing operational blows:

• staff shortages;
• declining demand;
• additional expenses for generators and fuel.

For example, we spent approximately 150 тис. грн on diesel fuel for generators at each location alone. My approach during such periods is to preserve key people and core business processes as much as possible. I am convinced that after the war, the companies that preserve their teams and can quickly resume operations will come out ahead.

Which decisions proved most effective in growing the company?

The biggest boost to the company's growth came from decisions made in 2018–2019. At that time, I launched several new automotive-related business areas and effectively expanded the business model into a one-stop shop.

This meant that customers could, within one company: 

• service and repair their car;
• buy or sell a car;
• order a car imported from abroad;
• restore a car after import;
• install additional equipment and improve security.

Automotive security studios became another important area — anti-theft systems, security systems, and other technologies. Over time, this area developed into a broader range of vehicle upgrade studios.

This includes installing:

• dashcams;
• parking systems;
• various electronic modules and features;
• window tinting;
• protective films and other protection solutions.

These areas created additional value for customers while also strengthening the core service business through cross-demand.

Which of your mistakes do you now consider your most valuable learning experience?

My most valuable mistake was taking too long to establish financial accounting and a «clear picture» of the business. For a long time, we had an operational software system, but it did not provide a complete understanding of revenue/expenses, cash flows, or the balance sheet. That meant I could not see what was actually working, where the margins were, where money was being «used up», or which inventory items or business areas were delivering results. It was not until 2019 that we implemented a large ERP system with management and accounting, CRM, and a shared working environment for all employees — including mechanics, who can see their own records and workload schedules. We should have taken this step much earlier: without detailed reports, an entrepreneur cannot manage growth — they react instead of managing.