Ukrainian bakers earned millions on Easter cakes: how the business adapted to holiday demand
24 April 21:55
During the Easter season of 2025, Ukrainian bakeries and restaurants managed to turn holiday demand into a real business success. The demand for Easter cakes has grown so much that some establishments have been forced to increase production – hire additional staff, work night shifts, and buy equipment, reports
Yulia Kvitkovska, the manager of The Cake in Kyiv, said that by April 21, they had sold about a thousand Easter cakes. They were prepared in conditions of intensive work: with night shifts and a double number of employees in the shop. Most buyers chose large Easter cakes for 900 UAH. Over the entire sales period, the restaurant earned about UAH 740 thousand.
The Honey and Zavertailo restaurants also saw strong demand. Easter cakes here cost from UAH 950, and festive panettone from UAH 2200. Stanislav Zavertailo, co-owner, noted that Ukrainians are baking Easter cakes at home less and less, preferring ready-made products.
In Lviv, the FAMI restaurant chain, according to co-owner Valeriy Sozanovsky, sold 1,300 Easter items in just one week. The most popular was the classic raisin Easter cake for UAH 600, and the cheese cake for UAH 900. The most expensive product was a panettone for UAH 999.
The Frankivsk-based Franyk chain relied on scale. In 10 days, they sold 9,000 Easter cakes for UAH 5 million. To meet the demand, the company purchased two new ovens, a dough mixer, and hired 25 additional employees.
“The result was a significant increase in revenue compared to the non-holiday period,” emphasized Dmytro Ryman, partner of the chain.
The greatest competition was observed in Kyiv. Famous chains such as Namelaka, Milk Bar, Honey and Zavertailo organized active marketing campaigns. Easter cakes started at UAH 1180 at Namelaka, UAH 680 at Milk Bar, UAH 950 at Honey, and UAH 850 at Zavertaylo. According to estimates, these establishments could have earned up to UAH 10 million. However, according to Ryman, the potential profit could have been increased if they had launched a convenient app for accepting online orders earlier.
Not all market players were successful. According to founder Oleg Andriyuk, the Lviv-based Salalat chain sold only 200 Easter cakes with an average price of UAH 750. Revenues, on the other hand, dropped, which Andriyuk explains by a decrease in attendance due to high competition.
Overall, the Easter season has become a litmus test for the restaurant business. Those who were prepared in time, invested in production and promotion, managed to capitalize on the holiday excitement. Others faced market pressure and declining revenues.
Earlier
The highest demand for Easter cakes was observed during the last week before Easter, with sales peaking on Friday, April 18. It was on this day that consumers were most active in buying holiday baked goods in preparation for the celebration. On that day, restaurants sold over 120 thousand pieces of Easter pastries. Demand also remained strong on Saturday. On Easter, however, Ukrainians bought the fewest Easter cupcakes during the entire week.
Most people bought classic Easter cakes (42% of total sales). Cheese Easter pastries were the second most popular (15% of all pastries sold). Ukrainians also ordered Easter cakes with candied fruit (14% of the products sold).
At the same time, restaurateurs demonstrated a high level of creativity by adding atypical variations to the menu: “Dubai” Easter cake with dates and spices, Easter cake with a filling reminiscent of the popular Snickers bar, and unexpected combinations such as sushi Easter cake.
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