From iPhones to Bali villas: how growing average transaction value led me into real estate
Today, I am an entrepreneur investing in international real estate and the managing director of Legion Real Estate , leading a team of around 60 people focused on Indonesia, Bali, Thailand, and the Maldives.
My business journey began while I was still at university. In my third year, I was offered a partnership, and it completely changed the course of my life. Before that, I had imagined a fairly conventional path for myself: a job, a career, stability. But entrepreneurship opened up an entirely different scale of opportunity. I realized quite early on that, given my character and way of thinking, this was the best way for me to fulfill my potential.
I came to real estate through a gradual evolution in sales. First, I sold Apple products—iPhones and MacBooks. Then I sold cars from the United States. Each time, I saw the average transaction value increase. At a certain point, it became clear that the mechanics of selling are generally similar, but the scale of the results is determined by the niche itself. So I consciously chose real estate, a market with significant potential and high-value transactions.
My first focus was suburban homes in the Kyiv region. It was during the COVID period, when people were looking for more space and wanted to live outside the city. We began developing this area, building a team, and scaling sales. But the full-scale war became a turning point. The Kyiv and regional market effectively came to a standstill, and I had to adapt quickly to the new reality.
Through an acquaintance, I entered the Turkish real estate market—at the time there was very strong demand among Ukrainians. I lived there for a few months, then went to Bali, initially just to spend the winter and take a break. But it was there that I saw a strong market and tremendous opportunities, and realized that this was where I wanted to build my business.
Today I live in Bali, and I believe that being physically present in the country where you work is one of the main competitive advantages. It allows you to understand the market much more deeply, know the locations and developers, see what really lies behind the projects, and offer clients much greater value. Many companies sell Bali real estate remotely, with offices in other countries, but that is an entirely different level of immersion in the market.
We pay special attention to our team and service. It is very important to me that the people who work at the company genuinely love what they do and care about their clients. That is what builds the quality of relationships and trust. I am very careful when hiring people for the team. What matters most to me is not how someone presents themselves in an interview, but their actual results in previous jobs. I always look at specific figures, case studies, and achievements. It is very important whether someone can speak honestly about their weaknesses and reflect on themselves. The strongest professionals are usually confident in their results and can easily substantiate them with facts. We also have a dedicated person who supports clients after a transaction and makes sure they are satisfied with the experience.
Another important area is our international department. We work not only with Ukrainian audiences, but also with English-speaking clients from countries around the world. This helps us build a more diversified and stable business model.
The real estate market has changed a great deal in recent years. Today, investors pay much more attention to security, liquidity, and a company’s reputation. People look not only at the property, but also at how many years the company has been in the market, what experience it has, and whether it can weather a crisis. Many new players are entering this niche on the wave of hype, but trust is much greater in those who have already proven their resilience over time.
Business has taught me a great many things. Above all, it has taught me adaptability and strategic thinking. I cannot say that business has taken anything away from me. I once thought I would spend my whole life in Kyiv, but today I live in Bali. I do not see that as a loss, though—more as the path life brought me to. I love Ukraine very much, and my family lives in Kyiv, but at the same time I am grateful to Bali for the opportunities, the people, and this new stage of my life.
As for advice to aspiring entrepreneurs, first of all, you need to answer honestly whether you are ready for this path. Entrepreneurship is not the social media version of “overnight success.” Behind the pretty picture lies a huge amount of work, stress, uncertainty, and responsibility. You have to be a little crazy to choose this path consciously.
I am also convinced that one of the most important skills in business is knowing how to choose the right market and business model. That can make you a highly successful entrepreneur or lead you to bankruptcy. If you know how to analyze markets, spot trends, and identify promising models, you will grow even with a less-than-perfect team or marketing. But if the market is weak, even a strong team will not deliver significant results.
In addition to my agency business, I am now also developing a real estate development business. Together with a partner, we are building a hotel complex in the center of Bali. This is my first experience in development, and the project is already under active construction, with most of the units sold.
I also have a real estate consulting business. We help developers enter the Bali market: we select land, create project concepts, and help with marketing and sales. In effect, I am building an entire ecosystem of businesses around the real estate market.
Looking ahead, I see myself continuing in the same direction, but on a much larger scale. I want to expand the business, enter new markets, and operate in more countries. Family and relationships are also very important to me. I have one child now, and I think that in five years there will be more of us.
International business has given me the opportunity to work and connect with very capable people. For example, we carried out joint projects with Oleksandr Usyk, and I recorded an interview with him. Many outstanding Ukrainian entrepreneurs and public figures have also visited Bali. I am very grateful to life for the opportunity to interact with such people and grow through that environment. I am now actively developing a new YouTube channel. There, I talk about investment and real estate, interview developers and well-known people, show the inner workings of the market, and help people make more informed investment decisions.
For me, happiness is an inner state. I can genuinely call myself a happy person. Happiness means health, energy, a sense of being alive, purpose, having loved ones nearby, and the opportunity to do good for others. It means being grateful for what you have while continuing to grow and shine for the people around you.
Life carried me here on the right wave: from Kyiv through Turkey to Bali
How did the business idea come about?
My core expertise has always been in sales and marketing. First, I sold Apple products: iPhones and MacBooks. Then I worked with cars from the United States. I noticed that with each new area, the average transaction value got higher.
At a certain point, I realized I needed a niche with higher-value transactions and greater growth opportunities. That is how I got into real estate.
In 2020, during the COVID period, my ex-girlfriend suggested that I take a closer look at this field. Everyone wanted to live outside the city then, because people needed space and the chance to spend more time outdoors. That is why I decided to sell suburban homes in the Kyiv region.
Later, I started hiring a team, and we grew rapidly for about a year and a half. But after the full-scale war began, the Kyiv and regional market effectively stopped because of the fighting.
Then an acquaintance told me about the high demand for real estate in Turkey among Ukrainians. I started working in this area through him, and we saw enormous demand very quickly.
Later, I moved to Turkey and lived there for a few months, then flew to Bali simply to take a break and spend the winter. But it was there that we saw a very strong market and tremendous opportunities.
I decided to stay, opened a company, and began focusing on the Bali real estate market. Later, we also started expanding into Thailand and the Maldives.
At some point, I simply felt that I was exactly where I was meant to be. Sometimes life seems to carry you along on just the right wave—and you can feel it.
Total focus on one project, with no option to “back out”
What key skills helped you launch the business?
First and foremost, it was total focus on a single project. This was not my fourth or fifth business. I focused all my time, attention, and energy on one area.
There was no option to “back out.” I understood that there was a market and that the product was selling, which meant that results would definitely come. Even when results took a long time, I simply kept moving forward, looking for opportunities and refusing to stop.
Determination, self-confidence, and a strong service mindset also helped a lot. I worked with clients myself for a while and built strong relationships with them.
And when I started building a team, leadership skills and the ability to convince people that we could become number one in the market played an important role.
First sale after three months: clients, cash flow, and belief in the outcome
What were the 3 toughest challenges you faced in the early years?
1. Finding clients
When you are just starting a business, you do not have a client base. You need to figure out how everything works: where to get leads, how to sell, and how to find properties.
In effect, you go through the whole process from scratch and build a brand and a company out of nothing.
2. Cash flow
The second major challenge was money. At the beginning, there was no steady flow of funds, so I had to invest my own money and keep focusing on growth.
I made my first sale about three months after starting. I remember very clearly how happy I was when I sold my first house.
3. Belief in the outcome
The third challenge was psychological resilience. I had to keep moving forward even when results were not yet visible.
Focus, support from loved ones, and the belief that everything would work out the way I had planned helped me a lot.
A constant roller coaster: sometimes very good, sometimes very difficult
What crises has your business faced, and how have you overcome them?
There have been many crises, and they keep happening. First, the war. Then building a new system in Bali: new marketing, a new team, a new market.
There were periods of very strong growth, followed by downturns because of situations involving developers in Bali. In recent years, business has been a constant roller coaster: sometimes very good, sometimes very difficult.
People in general are living with uncertainty and stress today, and this has a major impact on investment and the real estate market. So we have to keep adapting the system, making the business more stable, and looking for new solutions.
I think most entrepreneurs are going through this today; they just do not all talk about it openly.
The difficult decision to close every market except Bali
Which decisions proved most effective for the company’s growth?
The most effective decision was to close every other market except Bali.
We had branches in Kyiv and Turkey, but at a certain point I realized we needed to focus all our resources in one place. It was not easy, because everything had started in Kyiv and we had a team there.
But after we closed the other areas and focused entirely on Bali, the company began growing very quickly.
A cash flow gap that made me a mature entrepreneur
Which of your mistakes do you now consider your most valuable experience?
In my first business, my partner and I made many mistakes because we lacked experience in financial management.
At first, everything was going well, but eventually we ran into a cash flow gap. We did not keep track of inventory, spent too much, and lived beyond our means. When the first money started coming in, we rented expensive apartments and allowed ourselves unnecessary expenses.
It all became a very valuable lesson. That was when I truly matured as an entrepreneur and began to approach finances, partnerships, and building a business in a completely different way.
