From Hobby to Hot Enterprise: How One Kryvyi Rih Entrepreneur Built a Fiery Business

What began as a family joke to grow one of the world’s hottest peppers has become a thriving small business for Kryvyi Rih resident Olena Hozh.

With her first grant from the Women’s Opportunity Fund of Ukraine (WOF-UA), and later through the Fund’s FemAgro program, Olena transformed her passion for “superhot” peppers into Red Hot Peppers, a growing brand offering fresh and dried peppers, jams, pickles, sauces, candies, seeds, seedlings, and black garlic.

Through FemAgro, Olena learned to build a business model, test her products, and understand the niche community of spice enthusiasts. A new greenhouse and dehydrator, purchased with grant support, are already boosting her production and opening doors for expansion.

“Before the program, it was just a hobby. Now I see a real business and real opportunities,” Olena says. “I even dream of exporting my peppers from Ukraine to Japan.”

Today, Olena is continuing to grow her farm, restore her land damaged by a nearby missile strike, and develop new ideas for the future. She credits the Women’s Opportunity Fund with giving her “the push and confidence” to turn her passion into something sustainable and, hopefully, global.