Ukrainians enthusiastically share photos from Germany, Czechia or other European countries where people are so honest that farmers leave produce by the gate and customers take what they need and leave money. Roman Matys suggests checking whether a post would get the same enthusiasm if we said trust-based business is not only about Europe, but about Lviv Region too.
The photo shows the “self-service point” of Mr Mykhailo Kostiuk from the village of Baniunyn. Two years ago the farmer closed his staffed shop and decided to try a business built on trust. On his 10-hectare orchard he grows apples, peaches, plums, grapes, nuts, maize and, as you can see, pumpkins.
The system is simple: no sellers, prices on everything, bags to fill, and the money goes into a three-litre jar with a lid. If you need to ask something, the mobile numbers of Mykhailo and his wife Halyna are everywhere. “I show that you can trust not only me, but all of you,” says Mr Mykhailo, shaping a new kind of customer who values other people’s work. And it turns out there are plenty of such customers in Ukraine.
