Section 1: About me. Dossier.
«Moving to Poland. The decision was made very quickly — effectively within an hour. It was an example of my ability to act decisively in critical circumstances.»
Ponomarova Yuliana Serhiivna
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Join the clubSection 2. About the business. Dossier.
Section 3: Biography.
My name is Yuliana Ponomarova, and today I am the co-owner, together with my husband, of the Sobeauty chain in the laser hair removal and cosmetology industry. Our team has more than 150 specialists, and our business operates in Ukraine and Poland.
My entrepreneurial journey has not been about comfort. Twice, war forced me to start over. In 2014, we moved from Luhansk to Kyiv and essentially started from scratch. Later came another fresh start in Warsaw. I am not inclined to romanticize these events, but I acknowledge that it was precisely these difficult circumstances that shaped my resilience, speed in making decisions, and pragmatic approach to action. Stress became not a destructive force, but a catalyst for growth.
Entrepreneurship is a natural state for me. Since childhood, I have looked for opportunities, initiated my own projects, tried things, sold, and experimented. I was motivated not by money as an end in itself, but by the process of creating and the results. This inner drive to build and scale remains my key motivation.
In business, my husband and I focus on solving tasks, not discussing problems. If there is no electricity, we invest in generators and ensure business continuity. If a new market does not trust us, we reinforce our position with figures, customer reviews, and systematic reputation-building efforts. I am convinced that there are no unsolvable problems—there is a task, a strategy, and responsibility for carrying it out. At the same time, my personal life always takes priority over business. Meeting my husband and the birth of my son are key events that transformed me as a person and a leader. My husband is my strategic support and a source of expertise in marketing and finance. My son teaches me patience, consistency, and responsibility for the example I set every day.
My strength lies in combining resilience, entrepreneurial thinking, and the ability to act quickly and systematically, even in the most challenging conditions.
The idea grew out of a personal need. Even back in Luhansk, I was concerned about unwanted hair, but I could not find an accessible, high-quality solution. Rather than wait, I decided to create one myself: we rented a laser, completed training, and got to work. Our first steps were very practical—I even tested the procedure on my husband to gain a deeper understanding of the customer experience and the quality of the results. From the very beginning, it was important to me not just to provide a service, but to establish a standard.
Determination and adaptability. I adapt quickly to new environments and am open to compromise and change. Rational decision-making. I do not act impulsively—every strategic decision is based on analysis and calculation. Entrepreneurial thinking. I enjoy building, testing, launching, and scaling. Money is not an end in itself for me, but a tool for development: most of our profits are reinvested.
At the outset, there were three key tasks: 1. Building a steady stream of customers (marketing and trust). 2. Finding the right locations. 3. Hiring qualified staff. For a long time, my husband and I handled recruitment personally, establishing quality standards and a work culture. This became the foundation for further scaling.
I do not see crises as one-off events—they are a constant part of how we work. New constraints arise every day and require solutions. In Ukraine, we faced electricity supply problems, but quickly resolved them by purchasing generators and kept all our locations open. Launching in Poland was another challenge. At the outset, we were turned down for commercial leases because we lacked a local reputation and banking history.
We worked systematically to build trust: we held numerous meetings, supported our case with figures, showed genuine customer reviews on Google, and provided factual evidence of our ability to pay. This experience strengthened my negotiating position and my ability to build trust from scratch.
The key decision was to scale systematically. We are growing in two ways: 1. Increasing capacity at existing locations (adding treatment rooms and equipment). 2. Opening new locations when a site has reached its capacity. I see a direct link between service availability and revenue: a new location or an expansion of an existing one often doubles or triples the performance of that particular location. Our growth plans include Kyiv and Warsaw, as well as Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv as promising areas.
I do not single out any mistakes that I regret. Every decision was justified at the time it was made. Even difficult situations, I turn into experience that makes me and the business stronger.
Section 4: How can I be useful? Experience I can share.
My key experience is building and scaling a service business network in two countries without «ideal conditions». I can be helpful with:
My strength is responding quickly on the operational front: I don’t focus on the problem; I immediately look for a way to solve it.
We took a two-pronged approach:
My pragmatic approach is simple: to double in size, you need to double your investment—in marketing, equipment, and new locations. At the same time, you need the operational capacity to handle that growth. Our constraints are:
Section 5: Club value
