Sapfir, Limited Liability Company

General Director - Valeriy A. Reznichenko

Company Sapfir, Ltd. was founded in 1992, nearly at the time when the market reformation began in this country. Nowadays it functions and develops successfully not only on the Ukrainian market but it has also entered the European, American and Australian market. Since it foundation the Company has covered a long way of development and its activity has no analogues on the Ukrainian market. First, unlike many other Ukrainian firms doing mediation business it is engaged in direct production. Nowadays jobs are given to more than 30 employers and the enterprise plans to extend the volume of production in the future. Second, Sapfir's object of commercial interest is traditional art activities so the Company contributes actively to popularization of Ukrainian culture and revival of the long-standing traditions of folk applied arts.

Sapfir makes high-artistic products of wood-boxes, candlesticks, decorated eggs, brooches, napkin rings and plates. They are the works of art where the old folk motives of Ukrainian and Russia people found their reflection and present-day development. Creating decorative designs for their articles the Sapfir's painters base on and relies creatively the motives of such artistic techniques as Petrikovskaya painting, Zhostovo, Religious painting and Palekh.
At the beginning of the Company's activity the assortment of its products numbered no more than 10 items. Today there are 41 items of various products of wood which are made by using a special proprietary technology and each of the articles produced by Sapfir is represented in the Company's Catalogue. The standard assortment amounts to approximately 90% of monthly production. More over, the Company can offer to make small parties of exclusive articles on a special order.

Production has always been one of the highest priorities in the development of Sapfir. In the period of Company's formation the directing body managed to solve successfully the problem of mass production. According to special drafts a joiner's and painting equipment was made which allowed to start immediately putting out quite a big volume of products. Owing to the constant investments into the development of production by 2000 the Company managed to increase the output of its production by 6 times in comparison with 1992.
The process of manufacturing a complete high-artistic article consists of several stages. The raw-material used for the articles is natural and eco-friendly wood. In particular, birch is widely used because it has hard wood-pulp and can be easily worked up. Birch planks are delivered from West Ukraine, in the joiner's shop they are dried and sawed up and then the moulds for the articles are made on a lathe.
After that the moulds come to the decorating shop where they undergo a primary working up and are fully prepared for painting. They are primed and covered with special compound substance so an article takes on a required black base where a drawing is later made upon.
The next and the most important stage of the work is painting itself which is done with oil-colors by professional painters. Flight of their fancy has no limitation therefore a number of ornamental designs can be really unlimited. Every product made by Sapfir's painters has its own authorship, it is signed and dated. If a customer wishes, the author's copies of the articles appealing to him can be made.
Finally, a painted box, egg, candlestick or other products is covered with several coats of high-quality varnish.

High-quality and high-artistic Sapfir's products are much in demand both in Ukraine and abroad. As for the inland market they can be bought in big cities in specialized souvenirs shops. In Kiev Sapfir's products are sold in 6 department stores, specialized shops as well as Duty Free shop in international airport Borispol. Besides, since 1996 over 50% of its production the Company has been exporting to the USA, France and Argentina.