Ukrainian one-dollar store chain "Aurora" (LLC “Vygidna Pokupka”) will invest UAH 3.2 billion (including VAT) in 2025, including UAH 1.3 billion for the reconstruction of the WestGate logistics center near Kyiv, according to the company’s CEO Taras Panasenko.
“Aurora Multimarket’s response to intensified attacks on Kyiv: we invest,” Panasenko wrote on Facebook. “In 2024, we invested UAH 2.7 billion (incl. VAT). The investment plan for 2025 exceeds UAH 3.2 billion.”
He noted that the company has already obtained all necessary permits and has begun rebuilding the WestGate logistics center in Stoyanka village, which was completely destroyed by Russian strikes in 2022.
“This is the same center that was bombed by Russians — the one that housed the GoodWine warehouse. This year, we’ll invest over UAH 1.3 billion in its restoration. The rest will go toward expanding the store network and technologies. We will restore it and create 1,000 new jobs. We aim to reopen by January 2026,” Panasenko added.
Overall, the company plans to create over 2,500 new jobs in Ukraine in 2025.
“Our Ukrainian manufacturing partners — more than 600 of them — are also investing and creating jobs. Thanks to the growth of our Romanian company, many of these producers now export to the EU market through Aurora Romania. We will endure,” he said.
Aurora’s revenue in 2024 rose by 42.5% to UAH 38.5 billion (excluding VAT). In the first quarter of 2025, revenue grew by another 32.5% to UAH 10.6 billion.
Aurora was founded in 2011 by Vitalii Zhydenko, Taras Panasenko, and Lesia Klymenko. As of the end of 2024, the chain had over 1,600 stores in Ukraine and 30 in Romania. Its headquarters are located in Poltava.
According to Opendatabot, Aurora’s operating company is owned by Cyprus-based “Auroraretail Investments Limited,” with Zhydenko as the beneficiary.
