After five years of war, how do Ukrainian small businesses survive?

September 28, 2026

The ongoing war in Ukraine has severely impacted small businesses, with 83 percent experiencing negative effects, yet women-led enterprises have shown remarkable resilience and growth during this crisis. The proportion of women entrepreneurs has surged significantly since the full-scale invasion began, driven by displacement, loss of household income, military deployment of partners, and the need for flexible work arrangements that accommodate family care responsibilities. These small businesses have adapted by relocating, downsizing, changing their product offerings, and leveraging online platforms to reach international customers despite facing infrastructure damage, power outages, and logistical challenges.

Who is affected

Small business owners in Ukraine (83% negatively affected by war)
Women entrepreneurs and sole proprietors (nearly 60% of newly registered in Q1 2026)
Women heading newly established companies (12,757 in 2025, representing 34% of new enterprises)
Displaced persons who have lost household income
Partners of military service members
Online craft business owners (ceramics, jewelry, embroidery, clothing, cosmetics makers)
Workers in Ukraine's IT sector
Frontline and eastern Ukrainian communities (including Kramatorsk, Mykolaivka, Donetsk region)
Customers who have become poorer or displaced
Households managing children and elderly relatives
Anastasia (18-year-old manicurist in Mykolaivka) and her clients
Engineers now working in defense-tech industry

What action is being taken

Women are becoming entrepreneurs and registering as sole proprietors
Businesses are relocating, downsizing, and changing products or services
Companies are moving operations west or abroad
Employees are learning to work through blackouts and air raids
Small producers are selling online to international customers (Warsaw, Brussels, London, New York)
Engineers are developing drones, communications systems, and other military technologies for Ukraine's defense-tech industry
Women are traveling to neighboring towns for services like manicures
People are growing food, preserving vegetables, exchanging goods, and combining multiple income sources
Communities are relying on informal networks, pensions, and humanitarian assistance
Markets continue opening daily
Volunteers are conducting evacuations in dangerous areas
People are teaching classes, repairing roofs, taking elderly neighbors to hospital, and rescuing animals

Why it matters

This situation demonstrates how economic resilience during wartime operates at multiple levels beyond traditional macroeconomic indicators. Women-led small businesses have become critical social infrastructure, providing not just income but also spaces for community connection, normalcy, and psychological well-being during crisis. The growth of women's entrepreneurship reflects both necessity and adaptation, showing how war forces societal restructuring while revealing resourcefulness and survival strategies. These small businesses collectively sustain community functioning when formal economic systems are disrupted, though this represents survival under extreme pressure rather than success to be romanticized. The phenomenon illustrates how economic impoverishment during war extends beyond financial loss to include shrinking possibilities, reduced social spaces, and diminished community cohesion, while women disproportionately bear the burden of managing households, care responsibilities, and income generation simultaneously.

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: Global Voices