The founders of the company, Taras Panasenko and Lev Zhydenko, wanted to create something big and grand. But they started small - in 2011 they rented a folding table and set up retail outlet at the market in the village of Opishnia, Poltava region. Then a similar retail outlet in the market in the neighboring village of Dykanka
Then opened a fully-fledged store in the central market of Poltava. It was called "Jolly Basket". But this name was not very successful in practice, because it gave people a false perception of the store. They thought that "Jolly Basket" sold groceries or children's toys. The range was much wider, so there was a question of changing the name.

Interesting Facts
• The total number of employees - 5 people.
• 50 kinds of product
 

By early 2012, we managed to find a new name - "Grab it. All for 5, 10, 15". It clearly emphasized the format of the store but turned out to be too difficult to expand the chain.
Prospects for openening new outlets were growing on the background of existing stores’ success.
We found our customers, set up processes, planned the expansion of the assortment, and most importantly - we were needed by people. So it was decided to find a simple name that would be easy to read, stand out and remembered.

Interesting Fact
• Within a year of operation since its creation, the chain has several stores
 

At the end of 2012, the Company already had many achievements - stores were opened, the team was replenished with specialists, new areas of work were introduced. Our employees were just learning marketing, so at that time we agreed that the name of the future retail chain should meet 3 criteria:

1. Be feminine.
2. Easy to read and remember.
3. Begins with an "A" like Apple or Amazon, which we wanted to look up to. After all, we believed that in the future, our company name would also become big and famous.

With the help of a name-generation site, many variations were found. But the word "Avrora" in the opinion of the staff better met all the requirements.

It also turned out that there is a small planet with this name, named after the Roman goddess of the morning star, who brings light to people. The idea of building a planet of its own and bringing light to people evoked good associations, which only confirmed the right choice of the name. And the rapid popularity of the store was emphasized by the "I love" application. That's why our stores became known as "I Love Avrora".

Interesting Fact
• Our own loyalty program "Money Tree" was created in 2013.
 

The number of stores continued to grow steadily, the assortment expanded at a breakneck pace, with merchandise being brought into stores almost every day.

During this time, the seasonality of the assortment became apparent. Just come vacation time - beach hats and inflatable laps appeared in the store. As the New Year approached, tinsel and toys graced the sales floor. By the end of summer, the store shelves were filled with stationery.

Our stores were becoming a necessity for people every day, which prompted us to update the name to "Avrora Today". Now the signs themselves seemed to tell passersby that Avrora is the place to go today.

Interesting Facts
• Registration of the trademarks "Super Avrora," "Avrora Today" and "I ❤️ Avrora"
• 2014 - Avrora brand franchise start of sales.
• 2016 - rebuilding the ruins of the former factory into a modern office and warehouse.
• Takeover of 27 stores of the “AYa” (АЯ) chain.
• 2017 - opening of in-house training center in regions and support office.


 

By 2018 our customers were so used to calling our stores simply "Avrora" that the need for the word "Today" was eliminated. Since we are always working to be as convenient and understandable to customers as possible, we went ahead and changed the name. The name "Avrora" finally came to the forefront.

However, the chain was growing rapidly. And in order to quickly introduce people in new regions to our stores we added a descriptor to the signs - "family of social stores".

The descriptor explained that our stores are not just a retail chain, they are a family. The word "family" itself reflected the internal atmosphere in the company - simple and friendly relationships among employees.

The word "social" clarified our position of low prices. After all, our company did not earn through markups but because of high sales volumes and reduced losses in all processes.

Interesting Facts
• 2018 - implementation of LEAN Manufacturing Methodology (ASAICHI, 5S, KAIZEN).
• 2019 - more than 5 000 unique items in the assortment.
• 2020 - 496 stores, more than 5 000 employees.
• 2020 - purposeful and systematic work in the direction of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) was started.
• 2020 - remote work of the support office employees and adaptation of work processes in conditions of COVID-19 pandemic.
 

In 2021 the company has become a powerful market player and the leader by the number of retail outlets among the discounters in Ukraine, specializing in the sale of non-food products.
Our brand continues to gain recognition, we have more than 700 stores, the assortment is deepening and expanding. The company marks the presence of unique, original or trendy goods in its assortment. "Avrora" keeps prices low and offers visitors not only socially important goods, but more, something for the soul. So, the descriptor "family of social stores" is changed to "multimarket" where "multi" refers to the multiplicity of stores and selection of goods, and "market" refers to the format of operation, which provides comfort and satisfaction to customers.

Interesting Facts
• 2021 - The replacement of the descriptor "family of social stores" with "multimarket."
• Return of stores from franchise owners under the management of "Vyhidna Pokupka"* TOV, the final establishment of the company as a retailer.
• 2021 - receipt of investment from Horizon Capital's EEGF III Fund.
• Membership of the Company in the Retailers Association of Ukraine.
• Membership in the European Business Association.
• Membership in the American Chamber of Commerce in Ukraine.
• 2022 - Reconstruction of processes for work during the war, support of the population and volunteers.

*"Favorable purchase" LLC