Driving growth: a game-changer for women-led businesses in Georgia
Female entrepreneurship in Georgia’s Samtskhe-Javakheti region is an emerging sector showing gradual progress despite significant challenges. Limited access to capital – often rooted in conservative attitudes towards women’s roles in business – and fewer opportunities for skills development compared to men, remain key obstacles hindering the growth of women-led small and medium enterprises.
HEKS/EPER Georgia, in collaboration with two local NGOs – the Civic Integration Foundation in Kvemo Kartli and the Support Centre for Civil Society Formation in Samtskhe-Javakheti – are working in these regions to foster the entrepreneurial ecosystem for women. Through EU grants, the initiative empowers women-led enterprises across various sectors, from small-scale manufacturing to services such as beauty or hospitality, helping them to emerge.
Transforming a family bakery into a thriving business
Meet Maria Sarkisian, a lawyer and accountant by profession, who chose to transform her husband’s family business in bread-making into something much bigger. Her husband’s family – the “Meskheti Pashan Family” – is well-known in their village Skhvilisi, being the bread-bakers for 27 years. When Maria became part of the family four years ago, she brought the idea to expand.
The story began with the family’s piece of land in Akhaltsikhe, previously rented out for a car wash, and a clear vision to build a new bakery. While her husband and his family handled the construction of the new building, Maria ensured that every step was well-planned, from navigating regulations to overseeing finances.
The real turning point, however, came when she learned about the EU financial support offered via HEKS/EPER Georgia. Despite already having the land and the building in progress, the family lacked the funds to purchase the essential equipment needed for the bakery to thrive. “In the village, everything was done manually – cutting the dough, shaping the dough balls,” explains Maria. “The absence of a generator proved to be a significant challenge, as power outages – frequent in the area – could have disastrous consequences. If the oven cooled mid-baking, as was often the case, up to 200 loaves of bread would be ruined. When we got to planning our most pressing needs, it became clear that certain equipment was indispensable: a generator, a dough cutter, and a dough ball maker to alleviate the burden of manual labour. Furthermore, we decided to include in the grant application a new oven, to introduce a greater variety to our bread products.”
With the new equipment in place, the staff grew to nine people and the production soared from 500 loaves to 2,500-3,000 daily. The offer was also diversified to additional items – like khachapuri, pizza, pies, and sandwiches – making the bakery a local favourite. Though the bakery was opened in September, its business plan, carefully crafted by Maria during the trainings provided by the EU-funded initiative, has a vision for further expansion.
Tradition and innovation driving restaurant growth
Sophio Natenadze is a mother of four and the owner of a wine restaurant in Akhaltsikhe. The Natenadze Wine Restaurant grew from a wine cellar opened in 2010, catering to tourists for wine tastings. In 2017, Sophio decided to create a unique space which would combine wine tastings with a full dining experience.
While the restaurant initially focused on Georgian cuisine and wines, over the years, the family has worked to refine and develop its own distinctive brand. “In 2021, we took a bold step to introduce Meskhetian cuisine into our menu,” says Sophio. “These are the local authentic dishes traditionally prepared only in family kitchens; no restaurant offered them at that time.”
Striving to revive the culinary heritage of the Samtskhe-Javakheti region, Sophio and her team spent months visiting different villages, attending masterclasses and perfecting recipes to introduce them in a restaurant setting.
The Natenadze Wine Restaurant is a high-season establishment with a large outdoor space. However, extreme weather even during the warm months, significantly impacted the restaurant’s logistics and management, as well as customer satisfaction. “When it rains, we have to move guests quickly indoors, which creates logistical problems and additional stress to our staff. Once the outdoor space becomes wet and unusable, we lose the rest of the day’s potential revenue,” says Sophio.
The EU grant via HEKS/EPER Georgia allowed Sophio to buy a pergola which has proved to be a game-changer for her business. “Now we can fully make use of our outdoor space, regardless of the weather. The pergola enabled us to host parallel events, such as wine tastings alongside regular restaurant service. It also provides a perfect setting for broadcasting football games. As a result, our clientele has increased by 30%,” says the restaurant owner.
For Sophio too, the project provided more than just the financial support to buy a pergola or new kitchen equipment; it also offered valuable knowledge for upscaling her business in the future.
From a massage room to a beauty parlour
Mariamik Grigoriyan started her beauty business six years ago with a small massage room in Akhaltsikhe. However, with degrees in law and medicine, she felt she could do a lot more than just massage to make significant progress. This is how Mariamik started to look for experienced beauty professionals to kick off her own salon.
Despite some scepticism towards herself as a young woman in business, dedication and hard work helped Mariamik to build a strong reputation for her salon and grow her client base. “Once one of my clients said that my space was too small. Her feedback made me realise that expanding the space would not only boost my business but will also make my clients feel more comfortable,” says Mariamik. She found and renovated a new space, but new equipment required additional investments. This is when the woman came across a funding opportunity for female entrepreneurs offered by HEKS/EPER Georgia. The EU support enabled her to buy essential equipment for her beauty salon and introduce new services such as laser hair removal, hot and cold plasma treatments, carboxy lifting and tattoo removal, providing work for nine employees.
The Lavanda beauty salon opened in March and is now the only salon in Akhaltsikhe where clients can access a full range of beauty services in one place. Even in such short time, the impact of the expansion is quite tangible: its clientele has grown by 30%.“I would not have been able to buy all this equipment and to expand at this scale without EU funding,” acknowledges Mariamik. “EU support gives women hope, strength and the belief that it’s possible to start and grow a business in our own country, without feeling forced to leave and work abroad. And this strengthens our belief in a prosperous future in Georgia.”
Sophio, Maria, Mariamik, and 18 other women entrepreneurs from Samtskhe-Javakheti share a common thread in their success stories – stories where EU support plays a pivotal role in advancing their businesses.
By providing financial support, capacity-building and guidance to local SMEs, the HEKS/EPER initiative, closing in June, has been able to foster sustainable economic development and inclusivity, with special attention to women entrepreneurs in Samtskhe-Javakheti and Kvemo Kartli, who traditionally face greater barriers in these regions, where most businesses are male-owned. Overall, the project helped 44 female-owned SMEs, including those of Sophio, Maria, and Mariamik, to engage more actively in the local economy, improve their entrepreneurial skills and benefit from networking and mentorship.
As Giorgi Tvaliashvili, Project Manager at HEKS/EPER Georgia, remarks: “Gender issues, often shaped by entrenched social norms and traditional gender roles, remain a significant challenge in Georgia. Therefore, we should persist in our efforts to empower women in the region, ensuring their active participation and integration into the socio-economic life of society.”
Authors: Volha Prokharava, Nato Kirvalidze