Olena is the owner of Be Bright, Be Brave, a new business based in Thames Ditton. She imports handmade women’s shoes from Ukraine, in partnership with a female-run, artisan business already established there. We went to try them on for size…
Words | Kim Craig
Olena’s brave story started in Kyiv, Ukraine where she was born. Like many other residents of that city, and country, she fled the Russian invasion in February 2022, along with her husband and son. Her parents remain there, and her cousin is in Mariupol. Now settled in Thames Ditton, Olena and her family are building their future here.
Before leaving Ukraine, Olena was working as a landscape designer, a job that she loved. After studying, she teamed up with two other women from her course, taking on the social media marketing of the portfolio of work, a job that she still does for them, remotely. This experience helped Olena find volunteering work at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival in 2022, when she helped garden designer Carrie Preston, in partnership with Ukrainian designers Victoria and Oleksiy Manoylo, and their team to create “What Does Not Burn”. The garden expressed Ukrainian culture and strength, as well as hope for the future, and it was awarded a Silver Gilt medal, and Best Global Impact Garden.
Her idea to bring Ukrainian shoe design to the UK came in November 2022, inspired by the support she felt towards her and her compatriots from the local community. Already an admirer of the unusual, and brightly-coloured women’s footwear range produced by Hameleon in Ukraine, Olena and the owners set out on the journey together. And in August last year ‘Be Bright, Be Brave’ was ready to launch. ‘Bright’ reflects the design, and ‘brave’ is a tribute to their country of origin.
The shoes are handmade, by skilled shoemakers, using top-quality materials sourced in Ukraine, but
mainly from Italy – including Gucci and Prada ex-collection leather. For those whose budget can’t stretch to Gucci, you can at least have a touch of it on a pair of Olena’s shoes! Each style of shoe is named after someone who has a connection to the manufacture of each pair, for example, the ‘Olena’ is named after one of the designers, and ‘Valentyna’, after one of the shoemakers.
It’s important for Olena to convey the quality of the design and manufacture of Ukrainian products, and an all-encompassing task. A typical day for Olena involves producing social media posts, marketing, updating the website, invoicing, shoe fittings, customer service, and organising pop-ups and photoshoots. She has built a network of Ukrainian friends here, who help out with modelling the shoes, as well as supporting each other with their new lives and jobs.
Having felt supported by the local community here, it’s important to Olena to give back, not only supporting the Ukrainian economy with the business, but also charitably. The company donates a percentage of net profits to support Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital, the biggest in Ukraine, with the money going towards equipment and medicines.
Not busy enough with setting up her shoe business, Olena also works part-time for ‘GRoW’ as an interpreter and employment support worker. The organisation (Get Ready to Work) supports women back into work, raising the confidence and motivation for those who face barriers to employment. They have a specific Ukrainian Women’s Project, that launched a year ago, and Olena is on hand to help with their online sessions and translation services.
Olena is curious and ambitious, with future hopes for a stand-alone shop, and an expansion of the Be Bright, Be Brave brand, with other products and a mens range. But mostly, she’s brave – steadily putting one foot in front of the other, she has moved forward, against the horrors of the last couple of years. Her cousin is now closer and living in Kingston, having been assisted by Olena to find a host family, and she hopes to be able to bring her mum to the UK for a holiday soon. Her future, and that of her family is bright.
You can ‘try before you buy’ at Olenas showroom in Thames Ditton.
Be Bright, Be Brave
Shop online: www.bebrightbebrave.co.uk
Instagram @be_bright_be_brave
Facebook @BeBrightBeBraveShoes
TikTok @be.bright.be.brav
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Get Ready for Work programme: www.getreadyforwork.org
‘What Does Not Burn’ garden:
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