AFINA Group LLC, owned by Ruslan Shostak and Valery Kiptik—co-owners of the EVA and Varus retail chains—has made its first shipment of products to Latvia, the company’s press office reported.
“Entering the Latvian market is another important step in the development of AFINA Group’s exports. It is fundamental for us that we are entering the European market with products of Ukrainian origin and are gradually expanding the geographic reach of our own brands. The first shipment to Latvia is already a full-scale commercial shipment, and our next task is to develop distribution and brand presence in local retail,” said Yevhen Svitailo, head of the export department at AFINA Group, as quoted by the press service.
Latvia has become the seventh country where AFINA Group has an export presence, following Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Estonia. Three of the company’s brands—SARMIX, Polar Shine, and Bubble Bunny (the European version of the Vukhashtik brand)—have entered the Latvian market simultaneously. The first shipment includes SARMIX and Bubble Bunny laundry detergents, as well as Polar Shine products.
OZZ has become AFINA Group’s partner in Latvia and will work on expanding the distribution of Ukrainian products in the local market. A presence in the DEPO retail chain is being considered as one of the most promising sales channels.
In addition, it is reported that AFINA Group is continuing negotiations with international partners and working to expand its sales geography so that “Made in Ukraine” products become increasingly visible on the shelves of foreign retailers.
As previously reported, in June 2026, AFINA Group resumed operations of the tower-type production line for laundry detergents at the facilities of PJSC “Vinnitsapobutkhim.” The planned capacity of the tower-type production line is 95 metric tons of dry laundry detergent per production shift.
In August 2025, AFINA Group won an online auction for the privatization of the nationalized PJSC “Vinnitsapobutkhim” with a bid of 608.136 million UAH against a starting price of 301.406 million UAH.
AFINA Group has been operating in the Ukrainian market for over 20 years. It is one of the leading operators in the fields of distribution, logistics, and private label development. The ultimate beneficiaries are Ruslan Shostak (47.5%), Valerii Kiptik (37.5%), Serhii Pototskyi (10%), and Serhii Zaikov (5%).
The company manufactures products under the “Vukhastik,” “SARMIX,” and “iFresh” brands. It serves key national and local retail chains through its own extensive network of branches and distribution logistics centers.
According to data from the YouControl analytical system, in the first quarter of 2026, AFINA Group LLC increased its revenue by 0.65%—to 1 billion 527 million 185 thousand UAH, while net profit amounted to 90.4 million UAH, compared to 156,087,000 UAH in the first half of 2025.
Afina Group LLC, whose beneficiaries are Ruslan Shostak and Valery Kiptik, co-owners of the EVA and Varus chains, paid UAH 608.1 million for 100% of the shares of the privatized Vinnytsia Pobythkhim PJSC, according to the press service of the State Property Fund of Ukraine (SPFU).
“Once again, we are seeing a positive outcome of large-scale privatization: a nationalized asset that previously belonged to a Russian business subject to sanctions has returned to the Ukrainian economy. This is a double victory for the state: we are eliminating the influence of the aggressor country and at the same time receiving more than UAH 600 million, which has already been transferred to the budget and will be used for the country’s recovery. Privatization shows that even in the difficult conditions of war, we can attract investment, preserve jobs, and create new opportunities for business and economic development in general,” emphasized Ivanna Smachylo, acting head of the SPFU.
The funds have already been transferred to the budget and will be directed to the Fund for the Elimination of the Consequences of Armed Aggression for the restoration of the country.
As reported, in August, AFINA Group won an online auction for the privatization of the nationalized Vinnytsia Chemical Plant, offering UAH 608.136 million against the initial price of UAH 301.406 million.
Earlier it was reported that on July 31, 2024, the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) upheld the Ministry of Justice’s claim to apply sanctions to the Russian JSC Nevskaya Kosmetika in the form of confiscating 100% of the shares of the Ukrainian PJSC Vinnytsia Pobyutkhim to the state.
In July 2022, the seized assets of Vinnytsia Pobyutkhim were transferred to the National Agency for the Detection, Investigation, and Management of Assets Derived from Corruption and Other Crimes (ARMA).
As a result of a competitive selection process held in July 2023, the right to resume operations and become the asset manager was granted to Kraytex-Service LLC, part of the Afina Group. Kraytex-Service later announced that it would invest UAH 400 million in launching production at Vinnytsia Pobyutkhim.
ARMA ceased management of the asset in April 2025 and transferred it to the State Property Fund of Ukraine for further sale. According to the National Agency, during the period of management of the seized asset, almost UAH 100 million was transferred to the state budget.
While managing the plant, Afina Group launched production of its own brands, Vuhastyk and Sarmix, at its facilities. As previously commented to Interfax-Ukraine, the company plans to continue production of these brands after completing all the stages of ownership registration required by law: settlement of accounts and signing of a purchase and sale agreement with the State Property Fund, passing a comprehensive check on the participant’s compliance with the requirements of the law, confirmation of the absence of prohibitions and sanctions, as well as the official transfer of the object to the new owner.
According to data from YouControl, in the first half of 2025, Afina Group LLC increased its revenue by 10.8% to UAH 1 billion 517.25 million, with a net loss of UAH 156.09 million compared to a net profit of UAH 44.01 million in the first half of 2024.
