Oksana Ponomarenko is a handmade craftswoman and entrepreneur who owns two shops on Etsy: DollCotton and BlytheClothesDesign. She offers her clients a wide selection of handcrafted textile toys, as well as custom clothing for Barbie, Monster High series, and other dolls. According to customers, Oksana’s toys bring luck and help with any new beginning, both at home and at work.

Etsy Shop

Oksana is a seamstress and dressmaker. She has worked for a long time in two jobs: at a factory engaged in wholesale clothing production, and in a studio where she fulfilled individual orders. Her interest in handmade toys arose when she was on maternity leave.

“During maternity leave, I terribly lacked activity. I was used to having a tight schedule, and suddenly I found myself with a lot of free time. I wanted to do something with my hands, to return to sewing. One day I came across websites where other moms posted photos of their textile dolls and animals. That intrigued me. Plus, I had all the necessary materials at home — every seamstress surely has some leftover fabric scraps. All I had to do was pick them up and start. And I started. I’ve been doing this ever since.”

Initially, the craftswoman didn’t even think that such products could be sold. She simply made toys to keep herself busy and to delight her child.

“One day I took a rabbit I had made earlier and went to my friend’s studio to show her what I was doing during maternity leave. There was a client there who was either placing an order or picking one up. She saw my rabbit and said, ‘Sell it to me. I really like handmade work.’ That’s how I sold my first toy for about 50 hryvnias. Only then did I realize there was demand for such products and that I could make money from it.”

After that, I started looking for sales platforms. Sumy, Oksana’s hometown, is not very large. Unlike Kyiv, there were no huge street fairs where I could present my products. Ultimately, the craftswoman turned to social networks, and then in 2013, she registered on Etsy and opened her first shop called DollCotton.

“I opened the shop myself. A lot of things were unclear to me, so sales didn’t take off. Over time, I took a course from an entrepreneur, who explained everything step by step… The courses taught how to sell, what to pay attention to, how to write listings. After completing the course, my sales literally started within a week. At that time, it was easy. Now it’s more difficult because the niche is filling up, and competition is very high.”

Much time has passed since then. Oksana opened additional shops on Amazon and eBay, but her favorite marketplace remains Etsy. Now, on the DollCotton and BlytheClothesDesign pages, the entrepreneur has a total of over six thousand sales.

Stories that Fill Life with Meaning

Over ten years of work, Oksana has received hundreds of grateful reviews. Most clients agree — the dolls and animals by the craftswoman definitely bring luck to their owners.

“Honestly, I don’t know what it’s connected to. Maybe because I don’t even touch the machine when I’m in a bad mood — I can’t sew or do anything. A few years ago, I had an interesting story with one woman. She ordered a family of rabbits from me: mother, father, and a little child — she visualized, imagined what she wanted to get in life. By this method, the woman was looking for a husband. And I know, it sounds incredible, but she actually found him. He was dressed just like a bunny — in a rare swamp-green turtleneck. Later on, when she was planning to get pregnant, she drew the gender of the future child on a small rabbit, but guessed wrong. And when she was expecting her second child, she ordered another bunny. So her whole family would be together.”

Another equally interesting story involves a doll-angel that a businesswoman ordered from the craftswoman. As soon as the woman took the doll to meetings where important decisions were made, everything went smoothly. When she forgot the angel at home, things would immediately go awry. Since then, the businesswoman almost never takes the doll out of her bag.

While with dolls everything is simple and clear, pleasing clients who order doll clothes is sometimes difficult. It is almost impossible to explain to clients that sewing similar clothing for a doll, mainly designed for an adult person, is quite challenging.

“Recently, we had a client who bought a jacket for $60 from a store. This happened during the war. The delivery was delayed somewhere en route. The woman was very nervous about this. When I explained that delays are possible because of the war in our country, she just waved it off and said that the war had already ended here. Eventually, she demanded a refund, but two days later, she received her package. This was despite the fact that we had worked with her more than once… After that, she just stopped responding to my messages about payment or return — she never paid for the item.”

According to Oksana, the more expensive the order, the better the clients. Just before the war, the craftswoman had two large orders worth $300 each. When the military actions started and her family left the city, the clients just wrote: “Oksana, either don’t send anything at all, or send when everything is settled.”

“We also received strong support from a regular client from Japan. She kept asking how she could help us. I didn’t know what to answer… Then she bought $200 worth of various digital products from the shop — schematics for textile dolls and clothing patterns, which were completely unnecessary for her. That is, the woman still found a way to help us. Another client just sent me a collectible doll from America for free. That was very kind of her, considering that doll supplies are very poor now, and the prices for these dolls are sky-high.”

After February 24

It was only two weeks after the start of the full-scale invasion that the whole family managed to leave their hometown. They did not let go immediately. Then, somewhere nearby, a bomb fell, and the family was killed.

“At that time, green corridors opened for 3-4 days. Our city has many foreign students — we have a very good medical college. The green corridors were primarily opened for them. They were evacuated first, then local residents were allowed to leave.”

The next month, Oksana stayed with relatives in Poltava. They dared to return only after the complete de-occupation of Sumy.

“All this time, I couldn’t just sit idly by after returning. I knew I had to donate to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, help the economy hurt by the war. Plus, we have a child who needs to be fed. All these thoughts supported and motivated me. So even in Poltava, I bought plastic and sculpted various things with my hands to distract myself and calm my constant need to work.”

In the future, Oksana hopes to return to her pre-war level of competition, create additional jobs for people who know how and want to work with their hands. According to her, even small steps like these contribute to the development of business in Ukraine and promote Ukraine’s image worldwide.

“Earlier, I was employing two workers, but then COVID, the war, and everything else slowed down. Now, only my husband and I work: I invent and implement new ideas and work on the computer, while he receives and ships products. Even so, we don’t lose optimism. Despite everything, I want to continue my favorite work… Just try it, so you won’t regret wasted chances later. So my advice to everyone: try, try, and try again.”

Western Bid

Oksana is satisfied with her cooperation with Western Bid. According to her, the company works quickly, clearly, and always helps when needed.

“Western Bid — they are really smart. I honestly don’t know what we would do without such an intermediary. Shipping costs are much lower compared to other logistics companies, they resolve any issues on the spot, and there are constantly improvements happening.”

Conclusion on Western Bid’s Role

For Oksana Ponomarenko’s microbusiness, Western Bid has become a critically important partner, providing:

• Logistics accessibility: Significantly lower shipping costs allow the craftswoman to maintain competitive prices on lightweight textile products.
• Speed: Quick resolution of any issues (“on the spot”) frees up time for creativity and product development.
• Continuous progress: Regular service improvements give sellers new tools to scale even in difficult conditions of war and reduced production.