{"id":879947,"date":"2025-12-23T00:22:01","date_gmt":"2025-12-23T06:22:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/23\/ukrainians-get-creative-to-keep-businesses-alive-amid-winter-blackouts\/"},"modified":"2025-12-23T00:22:01","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T06:22:01","slug":"ukrainians-get-creative-to-keep-businesses-alive-amid-winter-blackouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/23\/ukrainians-get-creative-to-keep-businesses-alive-amid-winter-blackouts\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukrainians get creative to keep businesses alive amid winter blackouts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By Elmira Aliieva<\/span> and Daryna Mayer<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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For some, being trapped in a confined space as zombies leap out with chain saws would be a nightmare. But just 100 miles from the front line with Russia<\/a>, some Ukrainians see it as a chance to escape bigger problems in everyday life.<\/p>\n

While officials remain locked in negotiations to end the war<\/a>, Russian drones and missiles keep pounding Ukraine\u2019s energy infrastructure<\/a>, plunging entire neighborhoods into darkness as temperatures drop.<\/p>\n

At his escape room in Ukraine\u2019s eastern city of Dnipro<\/a>, Igor Nazarenko is one of many business owners finding new ways to keep things running during the hourslong power outages.<\/p>\n

An expanded lineup of horror-themed rooms, designed to unfold in twilight or complete darkness, can operate whether the power is on or off, Nazarenko, 38, told NBC News in a telephone interview last month.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In Ukraine, escape rooms continue to attract customers despite the disruptions brought by war.<\/span>Den Polyakov for NBC News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Escape rooms \u2014 immersive experiences where visitors are locked inside an enclosed space and must find clues to make their way out \u2014 are \u201cbooming in popularity\u201d in Ukraine, Nazarenko said.<\/p>\n

Nazarenko said his escape-room chain, XRoom, hit a record number of visits last month, even as operating without electricity became increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n

The business\u2019 escape rooms rely mainly on interactive performances, where hired actors physically engage with the participants, frightening them or giving them clues.<\/p>\n

With war-related stress now woven into the fabric of his customers\u2019 daily lives, visitors now \u201cwant more pain\u201d \u2014 and are open to more physical, thrill-seeking experiences that allow them \u201cto switch from everyday worries and feel strong emotions in controlled conditions,\u201d Nazarenko said.<\/p>\n

\u201cConveniently, this can be done in the dark and doesn\u2019t require centralized electricity,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Scheduled<\/picture>
Scheduled energy outages are leaving many residents and businesses without light for eight to 16 hours a day.<\/span>Den Polyakov for NBC News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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As temperatures drop and the hours of darkness grow longer, Moscow has intensified its bombardment of Ukraine\u2019s power plants and substations<\/a> \u2014 a tactic it has deployed every year since the start of its full-scale invasion in 2022.<\/p>\n

Winter in Ukraine<\/a> is typically snowy and cold, with temperatures between December and March sometimes plunging to as low as minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit, according to data from the World Health Organization\u2019s latest winter risk assessment for Ukraine.<\/p>\n

This year, emergency power cuts<\/a> have been imposed across Ukraine since early October, in what the Ministry of Energy said were necessary steps to stabilize the grid. As repair work continues, scheduled outages are leaving many residents and businesses without light or heat for eight to 16 hours a day.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Emergency<\/picture>
A power outage in Kyiv on Nov. 5 following intensified Russian missile strikes on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure.<\/span>Frontliner via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Large businesses have tackled the problem by investing heavily in generators and alternative energy sources, but for Ukraine\u2019s small businesses, the price tag is often too steep.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to buy a large generator, but they have now doubled or tripled in price,\u201d said Iryna Golotina, co-owner of Under Wonder restaurant in Kyiv.<\/p>\n

In a phone call with NBC News, Golotina, 46, said she, like many other small businesses, had been forced to get creative to keep the doors open and customers happy.<\/p>\n

The restaurant created special \u201cBlack Menus,\u201d featuring only dishes that can be prepared without electricity.<\/p>\n

At first, they used candles for backup lighting, \u201cthen we made lanterns from string lights and placed them in large vases, creating glowing decorative pieces that our guests loved,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Golotina said on one night when the power suddenly came back on, diners immediately asked the staff to switch off the lights again because the lanterns made the atmosphere more \u201cmagical.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some customers told her it reminded them of a dining hall from \u201cHarry Potter,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"XRoom<\/picture>
XRoom host a variety of escape rooms, including events that are horror-themed.<\/span>Den Polyakov for NBC News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Kyiv<\/a> remains a frequent target of Russia\u2019s deadly drone and missile attacks.<\/p>\n

Moscow maintains it only selects targets tied to Ukraine\u2019s military infrastructure, despite the repeated strikes on apartment blocks, heating stations and the country\u2019s already fragile energy network. <\/p>\n

Analysts say Russia is seeking to erode morale, pushing daily life to its limits and tightening pressure on an economy already weakened by nearly four years of war.<\/p>\n

Mark McNamee, a co-founder of the Ukraine Business Network, <\/strong>said that Ukraine\u2019s economy continues to be relatively resilient, but is \u201cdefinitely being deeply tested.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"XRoom<\/picture>
XRoom hit a record number of visits in October, even as operating without electricity became increasingly difficult.<\/span>Den Polyakov for NBC News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Every economic sector is currently being affected by the power outages, with manufacturing sectors \u201cthe hardest hit,\u201d he said in an email last month. Manufacturers in eastern Ukraine have experienced \u201cmore severe and frequent attacks,\u201d added McNamee, who is based in Kyiv.<\/p>\n

Service industries haven\u2019t escaped the ripple effects either, McNamee said, with closures of retail stores and other businesses during attacks or blackouts affecting consumers\u2019 moods.<\/p>\n

This means that fewer people feel inclined to leave their homes or spend money, he added, which adds even more pressure on companies already struggling to stay afloat.<\/p>\n

Evgen Primachok, an entrepreneur from Kyiv, said he had long dreamed of running his own business. He opened Khoryv Coffee in September 2022, just a week or two before the country experienced its first wave of wartime power outages.<\/p>\n

At the time, he said, customers flocked to his generator-powered cafe seeking warmth and Wi-Fi. But when outages returned this year, he said, many people had adapted their homes with backup energy sources, meaning far fewer ventured out to the coffee shop.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"UKRAINE-RUSSIA-CONFLICT-WAR\"<\/picture>
A customer uses a cellphone flashlight to choose food as she visits a restaurant during a power outage in Kyiv on Nov. 21.<\/span>Sergei Gapon \/ AFP via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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\u201cIt was extremely difficult,\u201d Primachok said in a video interview. \u201cFor two months, people barely left their homes. Everyone just stayed inside.\u201d<\/p>\n

To keep Khoryv Coffee afloat, Primachok also said he had to get creative, rebranding as a community haven instead of a simple coffee shop.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, you cannot just sell coffee and earn from it,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have to practically bend over backwards to make more people interested and come to us. We had chess-playing nights, music nights, old Ukrainian movie screenings and more.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A candlelit poetry evening at Khoryv Coffee in Kyiv.<\/span>Khoryv Coffee<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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The cafe has also hosted speaking events with Ukrainian military personnel who talked about their experiences on the front lines. \u201cOne time, they brought a wing of a Shahed drone, which we\u2019ve put up [on] our wall as a decoration,\u201d Primachok said.<\/p>\n

Despite the cafe\u2019s success, Primachok, 25, shares the same anxieties as many Ukrainian business owners.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very unsettling to dream about something while knowing that tomorrow or the next day you could die in the war,\u201d he said. \u201cThen I might never get the chance to fulfill my dream as an entrepreneur.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Elmira Aliieva<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Elmira Aliieva is an NBC News intern based in London.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Daryna Mayer<\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Daryna Mayer is an NBC News producer and reporter based in Kyiv, Ukraine.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Elmira Aliieva
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Dec. 7, 2025, 6:00 AM EST\u00a0\/\u00a0Updated\u00a0Dec. 11, 2025, 4:46 AM EST By Elmira Aliieva and Daryna Mayer For some, being trapped in a confined space as zombies leap out with chain saws would be a nightmare. But just 100 miles from the front line with Russia, some Ukrainians see it as a chance to escape<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":879948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1577,104359],"tags":[13602,18378],"class_list":{"0":"post-879947","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-creative","8":"category-ukrainians","9":"tag-creative","10":"tag-ukrainians"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=879947"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879947\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/879948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=879947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=879947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}