Share of Ukrainian-made children's goods in assortment of Epicenter chain reaches 35-50%

The share of Ukrainian-made children’s goods in the Epicenter chain’s assortment reaches 35-50%, depending on the category, Olena Solovyova, director of the Children’s Goods department at Epicenter, reported in an interview with Interfax-Ukraine.

“Against the backdrop of rising patriotic sentiment, the share of Ukrainian-made goods is growing. In the children’s goods department, it reaches 35-50% depending on the category. This trend is particularly noticeable in sales of children’s national clothing. Thanks to a wide assortment, the sales volume of this category in the Epik network has doubled over the past two years,” Solovyova reported.

She noted that, overall, during a full-scale war, consumers’ focus shifted to the basic needs of children and rationality.

"Consumers have become more attentive to price and seek a balance between quality and cost. Therefore, we are seeing an increase in demand for more affordable products, while the premium segment and larger purchases are declining," she stated.

Another trend is the need for emotional compensation. Toys increasingly serve not only a fun function but also help children and families cope with stress and create a sense of joy in everyday life. Parents are looking for more "useful" toys that help their children develop or cope with the effects of stress, which is especially important during a full-scale war.

The most active consumer segment in recent years (a global trend) is kidults – adults (usually 20-40 and over years old) who retain childhood hobbies and are interested in toys, animation, comics, video games, or pop culture.

The Epicentr group of companies is an omnichannel ecosystem uniting the Epicentr and Nova Liniya retail chains, the epicentrk.ua online store, the Epicentr-Agro agricultural holding, Epicenter Ceramic Corporation tile production plants, the Center for Lifestyle Materials Osmoloda woodworking enterprise, and logistics capacities.

The Epicentr network has remained one of the leaders in Ukrainian retail for many years, constantly developing new formats and product lines. One of these was children’s goods, which first appeared in the company’s assortment back in 2011. Subsequently, in response to growing demand and the need for a specialized format, the company launched a separate retail project — shop-in-shop stores under the EPIK brand. Today, children’s goods are represented in virtually all 72 Epicentr and Nova Liniya shopping centers, as well as in "near home" format stores, specifically Epicentr Express.

According to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and Individual Entrepreneurs, the participants of Epicentr K LLC are Oleksandr Hereha (51.3%), Halyna Hereha (47.97%), and Tetiana Surzhyk (0.73%).