Alina Koronovska: "You are capable of more than you think"

The heroine of the June Digital cover of BOMOND VIP fashion was Alina Koronovska - a hair stylist, founder of the brand of handmade wigs and afro-curls, a Ukrainian, whose story is an example of how even after the most difficult tests you can find the strength to start life anew. The war changed her fate, but did not break her character: having moved to Prague with her young daughter, she built her own business from scratch, and her profession became a real therapy and a path to recovery. "Strenth is the ability to rise after a fall, continuing the path," says Ms. Alina. In the new interview, we talked about the transformative power of women's change, the development of our own brand at the international level, and the courage to choose yourself despite fears. And about the important truth: do not allow other people's words to determine your own destiny, because every woman is capable of more than she thinks.

Mrs. Alina, I am close to your view that we ourselves are the creators of our own fate and our own happiness. But today we live in a time when war abruptly and painfully rewrites our life pages. I know your story was no exception.

Tell us, please, what was your path as a Ukrainian ... from those first terrible days to moving to Prague and creating your own business in a new country? What has been forever engraved in your heart since the beginning of a full-scale war?

The house that changed everything

I come from a small village in the Zaporizhzhia region, which is currently under occupation. For the last eight years before the full-scale war, I lived in Kharkiv and planned to stay there. I didn't consider moving abroad. I wanted to live, work and grow at home.

On March 1, our lives were divided into “before” and “after”. My three-year-old daughter and I were staying in a rented apartment in a house where an air bomb flew. It was our house - not near, not somewhere nearby. A lot of people died that day.

We survived. I still think it's a second chance.

After the explosion, I ended up in the hospital. For several days we hid in the basement under constant shelling. It was then that I truly felt the full power of responsibility for my child for the first time. In three years of motherhood, I was not aware of it as acutely as at that moment.

We went to Lviv by evacuation train. They stayed there for about two days until they went on to the Czech Republic. I didn't go because I wanted to change the country. I went for the safety of my child.

About the first steps in the new reality

In the Czech Republic, I started from scratch. Having a master's degree in veterinary medicine, I worked as a cleaner in a boarding house - I washed the floor, cleaned the rooms. And there was no shame in that. There was a desire to stand.

But inside I knew that this was not the end of my story.

Two weeks before the war, I braided myself afro-curls in Kharkiv and had to go to training. The war destroyed these plans. However, in the Czech Republic, I came back to this idea.

I started studying online — first one course, then another. I looked for customers, went on trips, took a small payment. It was not so much about earning money, but about saving yourself from fear and depression.

The profession has become my therapy.

Later, my daughter and I moved to Prague. And that's where I made the decision: no more part-time work. I am fully dedicated to my work.

It was hard. There were nights without sleep, overwork, doubts. But I knew what I was working for.

If you were an artist and had the opportunity to create a portrait of a modern woman, what would she be? What character traits, state and inner strength would you convey through this canvas?

For me, a modern woman is a strong and independent person.

She is able to adapt to any stage of her life. It transforms, changes, grows. It doesn't just survive, it makes the world a better place.

Strength for me is not toughness. It is flexibility, the ability to rise after a fall and continue on the path.

You combine many beautiful facets. Among them is the opportunity to be a mother. What has motherhood become for you? What are the main values it has formed in you?

Motherhood has made me stronger than I was.

But it was after the explosion that I really realized that I was a mother. That I have a huge responsibility not only to save the life of the child, but also to form an independent, strong personality from it.

Being a mother for me means loving, protecting, supporting. But at the same time - to develop character.

When we arrived in the Czech Republic, I sat and cried. She said I wanted to go home. And then my little daughter came over, hugged me and said:

“Mom, don't cry. This is our home now.”

At that moment, she became my support.

She is my main motivation not to give up.

Afrocurls are a bright and bold choice that not everyone dares to make. Where did this direction come from in your work? And what, in your opinion, afrocurls reveal in the character of a woman?

For me, Afro-curls are not just a hairstyle.

It's an internal change.

The woman does not come for new hair. She comes for a new state. And I see how her look, posture, confidence change.

Many women come with pain - because of their hair spoiled by dyeing, because of insecurity. And when they allow themselves to transform, they seem to let go of the old life.

If the client stops coming over time, I perceive it as a sign that she has blossomed and entered a new happy stage.

Your professional path is an example of how you can start from scratch in another country and build a new business. Today you are scaling your own activities and going to the international level. What was the main motivation for you not to stop there?

Today, I don't just work with clients.

I teach masters, sell online courses and consultations, develop my own online store. I ship wigs and products all over Europe.

And for me it is especially valuable, because I have long dreamed of reaching the international level.

I know it's not the limit yet. I'm going to a bigger scale. And I know for sure - I'll go out.

Because after the day when we miraculously remained alive, I promised myself: if I was given a second chance, I would live this life to the fullest.

I propose now to imagine that you and I are somewhere on the seashore ... And we have many postcards that we will send to every woman on the planet. What message would you write?

Don't be afraid to change yourself and your life. Don't be afraid to leave the place where it hurts.

Don't be afraid of other people's opinions, they will speak anyway. But that doesn't have to determine your destiny. Overwhen your fears every day. And remember: you are capable of more than you think.”

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