He quit a promising IT position because he made wallets at night! Then he realized that he wanted to transform leathercraft into his full-time job. Now his Balabanoff brand is expanding over the world.
Balabanoff leather wallets, belts, watch straps, dopp kits, bags, bracelets and cases for iPhone are constantly shipped out to the residents of the USA, Europe and Asia. Behind a small Ukrainian brand is Igor Balabanov from Kharkiv, who left his job in IT and began to build his career in his passionate hobby, which is leathercraft.
Igor went to Nova Poshta Business School in 2017 and graduated successfully. He told their media partner (MC Today) how exactly he turned his hobby into a business, spending just one thousand dollars and how he entered Western market and what NP’s project taught him.
The only employee at Balabanoff Brand is the founder of the brand himself. “To work as efficiently as possible, with a minimum of hired people is one of the most useful advices that I received while studying at Nova Poshta Business School,” said Igor Balabanov.
Earlier, the entrepreneur wanted to invite other craftsmen, but after the graduation he decided that he would not hire employees. All the work that he cannot do himself, Igor gives to outsourcing. “At the end of the day, I have to be responsible for the final product, not for people,” he says.
Igor started on his own, everything was created by himself.
Since his childhood, Balabanov has been attracted by creating handmade things, but he applied to a technical faculty at the University after school. And after University he tried to work in the IT field, but he was convinced almost immediately that it was “not his”.
Then Balabanov followed his dream and got a job as a shoe designer at a shoe factory. Igor liked it, but there was the stumbling block! He did not like the quality of Ukrainian, Turkish and Chinese leathers, with which he had to work.
When Igor had free time, he studied the websites of different workshops from the USA, which make expensive leather goods. He was so inspired that he decided to create his own wallet. After the first handmade experience, it was unreal for him to stop.
“I came home after my shift and sat over my handmade wallets for the whole night,” recalls the founder of Balabanoff Brand. At first, he perceived it just as a hobby. But in 2015 he decided to quit his job at the factory and start his own business.
Igor saved money from his salaries as much as he could. It took about one thousand dollars to get started with his own project. He said that with his current experience it would be possible to keep the amount between 500-700$.
The initial plan was to create 3-5 wallets that would certainly grab the attention of the audience. Balabanov purchased high-quality materials from the online store based in the USA. The name of the brand deprived from Igor’s surname, written in the Western manner. While for the logo’s image he took the symbol of his family — a noble bird from the falcon species.
Eventually, Igor designed his own products, created the website and was fully prepared for orders to pop up. But it turned out to be much more complicated. The new website was poorly indexed by the search engines, there were only a few customers. “For the first 2-3 months, literally nobody notices and wants you,” stated the founder of Balabanoff Brand.
Notwithstanding, the aspiring entrepreneur did not give up. He said that he had never had even the thought of abandoning his project.
Sales of the goods appeared because of the word of mouth in Ukraine. But Igor counted on the wide expansion to the Western market and further. In 2015, he also decided to put five products at the world's largest handncraft marketplace – Etsy.
He studied thoroughly this step: “Almost no one buys such goods through websites, everyone is looking for them on marketplaces – for example, Amazon or Etsy.”
Balabanov does not disclose his profits, but admits that he doubles his revenue with each year. He reinvests almost all the money into the business. Now he receives at least fifty orders per month.
The entrepreneur has already sold about 900 pieces at Etsy. His brand page has over 250 reviews, which is really enthusiastic. Among the customers are not only Americans and Europeans, but also residents from Asia, in particular Singapore.
These are not only wallets available, but also belts, dopp kits, watch straps, passport covers, bracelets, cases for iPhone and glasses, key fobs. Key fobs cost from 15$ to 25$, wallets from 35$ to 100$ and over. It all depends on the chosen materials and your favorite model.
Igor could not decide about a pricing policy for a long time. He had his wallets that were sold for both 40$ and 80$, and there were also things that could not be sold for any money.
Everything was more clear for him after the training module “Cost” in Nova Poshta Business School. “The speakers explained to us that “wars” for low prices always lead to “defeats”,” recalled Balabanov, “If you constantly make the price lower, then you are no longer perceived as a serious brand. In addition, if prices are reduced by all “players”, the market will become useless to everybody. Perhaps in this way you will “kill your competitor”, but you will also lose for yourself.”
He stopped reducing the cost of products and began to pay more attention to the brand.
“In Ukraine, products are mostly often bought by people, who are over 30. There are equal numbers of men and women as buyers,” said the entrepreneur. “They don’t buy wallets or belts, made of expensive leather, but rather the image of a successful person who can afford it.”
According to Igor, he did not have a clear vision of how to develop his business earlier, but after NP Business school, he worked out a strategy for the development. “Frankly speaking, I realized that I do not need to print a thousand ordinary forms, it is much better to print a hundred, but they will be designed ones,” he stated.
How did Balabanov begin to produce his own shoes?
Men's loafers stand out in the Balabanoff brand’s range. “It was my dream to start creating shoes from high-quality leather,” Igor Balabanov said. He did not receive such an opportunity at the shoe factory. Instead he released his own shoes under his own brand! You can buy one at Etsy now, the pair is priced at 149$.
Organizing the production was not an easy task. You need three leather parts for a wallet and for loafers – 30. “I had to invite the artisans of shoe crafting, who have the necessary experience. Boy, you have to get down to the ground, you're not doing this,” - every now and then Balabanov heard from the shoe makers.
In NP’s Business School, more particularly in the “People”module, students were told about the different personality temperaments and how you should behave with each of them. This knowledge helped Igor to negotiate with potential partners. In the end, he found a person who helped him to create details for shoes and develop the final product.
The leathercrafter learned about Nova Poshta Business School from his incoming mails. He was interested from the first sight: it was an opportunity for him to gain a lot of new knowledge and change the usual pace of life.
“I even took notes, but so far I have not used most of the information from my notebook. It has enough of the useful advices for the next five years of my business project, ”smiles Igor.
In addition to gained knowledge, he also greatly appreciates the established contact with other Kharkiv entrepreneurs, who studied with him there. “These are the people, who will build the economy of a new country. It is nice to be a part of this movement, ” he added.
He still communicates with those colleagues, in particular, with the developer of the stereo systems from Era in Ear – Vitaliy Barchan and the representative of the fashion industry Andriy Degtev.
The big plan is to open a warehouse in the USA!
The leathermaker claims that Balabanoff Brand will not create goods for the mass market, but remain its unique style and handcrafted process. But at the same time, he aims to increase the production and expand the range. Igor is developing a lot of new products these days. One of the new projects is a collaboration between Balabanoff leather brand and the brand of wood accessories for alcohol beverages.
However, the most important project for the near future is related to logistics for Igor. He will cooperate with a company that provides storage services for goods in the United States. This will enormously reduce the delivery time to US customers – from two weeks to just several days. It is a really essential step forward towards the main target audience.