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A Recipe Passed Down Through Generations: How the Lukatsky Family Built a Confectionery Brand Exported to More Than 55 Countries

Sometimes the story of a large company does not begin with a business plan or investment.
Sometimes it begins with an old family notebook.
That is exactly what happened with the Ukrainian confectionery company LUKAS. For decades, the Lukatsky family archive held a notebook filled with confectionery recipes. It belonged to Borys Lukatsky, who headed the Chervonyi Kharchovyk enterprise in Kremenchuk back in the 1930s. For years, he collected and recorded recipes for confectionery products, convinced that sweets could bring positive emotions to people even in the most difficult times.
Decades later, his grandson Oleksandr Lukatsky found the notebook among the family archives. Together with his son Vitalii, they decided to continue the work of several generations of the family and establish their own confectionery production. That is how the story of LUKAS began.
Today, the brand's products are exported to more than 55 countries worldwide, and LUKAS has become one of Ukraine's largest confectionery manufacturers.

From a Small Shop to an International Manufacturer

The company was founded in Kremenchuk in the late 1990s as a family business.
Its first production facility opened in 1999, with a capacity of just 100 kilograms of products per shift. At the time, few could have predicted that several decades later the company would be producing around 2,500 tonnes of confectionery products every month and selling them across several continents.
Today, the LUKAS production complex covers around 11 hectares. The company produces more than 100 types of products and employs over 800 people.
Over the years, the brand has become well known among Ukrainian consumers for its croissants, Sharzan candies, Mega Sharzan bars, Ptashyne Moloko, biscuits and dozens of other products.
But the most interesting part of the LUKAS story is not the scale of its production. It is the journey that led to it.

One Contract That Changed Everything

A turning point for the company came in 2015.
That was the year LUKAS signed its first international contract and began developing exports systematically. Participation in ISM Cologne in Germany — one of the world's best-known events for the confectionery industry — played an important role in this process.
Moldova became the company's first foreign market. Other Eastern European countries followed, and eventually much more distant destinations.
Today, LUKAS products are available in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Poland, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Vietnam and dozens of other countries. International trade fairs, referrals, distributors and professional business networks remain the company's main channels for finding new partners.
“For us, exports are about much more than selling products. They are about trust, reputation and the opportunity to show the world that Ukrainian quality can successfully compete with the best international manufacturers.”
That is why international business has long ceased to be a separate area of activity for the company. It has become part of its corporate culture.

Quality That Builds a Reputation

On the global confectionery market, simply creating a good product is not enough.
A company needs to be consistent, reliable and ready to adapt to the requirements of different markets.
LUKAS identifies a combination of a broad product range, consistent quality and flexibility in working with customers as some of its key advantages.
The company works actively with both its own brands and private-label products, while its in-house R&D team develops new products and adapts them to the requirements of international partners.
High production standards are supported by international certifications including BRC, FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, RSPO and Rainforest Alliance, as well as SEDEX audits.
This systematic approach has enabled the Ukrainian manufacturer to compete in markets where the world's largest confectionery brands are also present.

The Toughest Test — War

The full-scale invasion became the biggest challenge in the company's history.
Disrupted logistics routes, uncertainty, problems with raw material supplies and risks to employees required quick decisions and maximum focus.
Yet just 15 days after the full-scale war began, LUKAS resumed production.
The company says this was not only a matter of business necessity.
It was about responsibility to its people, partners and country.
“On the fifteenth day of the full-scale invasion, we had already resumed production. For us, it was a matter of responsibility to our people and our country.”
It was during this period that the philosophy of a company built on family values and long-term thinking became especially clear.
Today, the company continues to operate, invests in production autonomy, expands its export geography and looks for new opportunities for growth.

The People Behind the Company

Despite its modern equipment, international certifications and exports to dozens of countries, LUKAS believes that the company's greatest asset is not its production lines.
It is people.
“On the fifteenth day of the full-scale invasion, we had already resumed production. For us, it was a matter of responsibility to our people and our country.”
Perhaps that is why a company that grew out of a family business has managed to preserve this atmosphere even after becoming a large international manufacturer.

A Company That Thinks in Generations

Today, LUKAS continues to expand its presence in international markets, develop new product categories and invest in production.
The company's priority growth markets include Southern Europe, Asia and North America.
But if you look closely at the history of LUKAS, it becomes clear that the story is not only about export geography or production figures.
The company's real strength lies in its ability to think not in quarters or even years, but in generations.
It is no coincidence that Vitalii Lukatsky, the company's CEO, describes its mission this way:
“We are here to create a Company whose lifecycle extends far beyond our own lives.”
The story of LUKAS shows that Ukrainian businesses can build more than successful companies.
They can build a legacy.

LUKAS in Numbers

  • Year founded: 1999
  • Location: Kremenchuk, Poltava Region, Ukraine
  • Export markets: more than 55 countries
  • Employees: over 800
  • Production complex: approximately 11 hectares
  • Production volume: around 2,500 tonnes of products per month
  • Product range: more than 100 confectionery products
  • Key products: croissants, candies, bars, biscuits, cakes
  • International certifications: BRC, FSSC 22000, ISO 22000, RSPO, Rainforest Alliance, SEDEX
  • Priority growth markets: Asia, Southern Europe, North America
2026-09-13 15:52 Made in UA