Straight from his office in the center of Kyiv, Alexander Katsuba briefly shares his story of experiencing the war in terms of business, the state, and fields of work and interest of the entrepreneur.
Who is Alexander Katsuba?
35-years-old. Businessman and global entrepreneur. Born in Kryvyi Rih, Alexander lived most of his life in Kharkiv.
“I consider myself a Kharkovite. But at the moment, I am living in Kyiv.”
Alexander has three higher educations – a lawyer, an economist, and a gasman. Yet the most standing-out characteristic of his is a firm love for creating business projects across industries and niches.
Where was he on February 24?
When the war struck on February 24, Alexander was in Kyiv.
“I spent the whole day in the city. It was necessary to resolve a number of issues related to the operation of the business in wartime conditions. Afterward, I returned home in the evening. To be honest, I did not believe that all this would begin, that rockets would fall on Kyiv, on my native Kharkiv, and on other cities.”
On the evening of February 23, Alexander planned the day of February 24 without any heavy thoughts. But he had to wake up to the fact of relatives calling and repeating that a full-scale russian invasion had begun.
Evacuating the family
Priority number one was, of course, the timely evacuation of loved ones. But it didn’t take place right away.
“My family stayed in Kyiv until March 1, but then my brother and I decided to take the children out. I gathered all the children, took my brother’s wife and my ex-wife, and took them to Western Ukraine. There they set up on their own. My brother remained in Kyiv all this time. I returned almost immediately, having spent several days with my family.”
Gradually, Alexander figured out the situation and got actively involved in volunteering.
“In the early days, they wanted to block my card because I constantly donated somewhere – to funds, to people.”
In early March, no one knew what would happen next, and everyone tried to participate as best they could. When the big danger for Kyiv passed, Alexander gradually returned to active business processes. Today, a lot has changed, but he continues to work and pay his taxes.
Support for Armed Forces and volunteers
What was before the invasion looks like an absolutely different, unattainable life for many people in Ukraine. Everything has divided into the “before” and “after”.
“We are fighting to save projects so that the economy works and supports the army. And, of course, I try to join projects to help the military to the best of my ability.”
Since the beginning of the war, Alexander and his company have bought five pickup trucks that were handed over to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Then, an interesting project was born. The volunteers and Katsuba’s specialists joined forces, took a KrAZ from the Katsuba’s enterprise, and re-equipped its tank with an artillery gun.
The resulting vehicle was sent to the front. The military liked it, and now four more of the same prototypes are in the works. An amazing achievement in its own right, but the Army also needs light mobile transport. So Alexander is buying cars again. Ten more pickups for the Armed Forces of Ukraine are on the way.
Planning workflow in the wartime
“Currently, we are trying to support our local business workflows and develop across other markets. We have been working on this in several countries for a long time. And it is now easier for us to strive abroad than for other companies completely tied to the domestic Ukrainian market.”
Alexander Katsuba’s attitude and efforts toward the war only demonstrate the perseverance of the Ukrainian people once again. More “Katsuba Files”, insights, and updates are on the way. Stay tuned.