I grew up in Ukraine. In my twenties I worked in retail category management at Eldorado and Foxtrot — the two largest consumer electronics chains in the country at the time — running buying and merchandising for categories that moved millions in annual revenue. I learned how large organizations actually function, which is usually quite differently from how they describe themselves in presentations.
Then I started building my own things. Royal Bag was an e-commerce company selling bags and accessories; Blamont was a wholesale distribution business for consumer goods. Neither made me rich, but both taught me what it costs to acquire a customer, what it means when a supplier misses a shipment, and what you do when payroll is due and the receivables aren't in. I also co-founded Elektrokarniz, a smart-home automation business, which introduced me to hardware constraints in a way software people rarely encounter.
I left Ukraine at 32 with my family, speaking functional English, no American professional network, and no established credentials. The first job I found was a package handler at FedEx — sorting freight at 4 a.m. Within six months I was the Operations Manager for the facility. That's not a boast; it's relevant because it tells you something about how I approach gaps between where I am and where I want to be.
Volod Reznichenko
volod.me
I joined Because Health, a healthcare longevity startup, as an early marketing hire. It was my first real exposure to the American healthcare system — and to the enormous gap between what people need from it and what they can afford or navigate. That gap has stayed with me.
Hearst came next. I joined to build the experimentation practice across the magazine portfolio — A/B testing, conversion optimization, and the analytical infrastructure underneath it. We now run hundreds of tests a year across properties that collectively reach tens of millions of readers. In 2025 I received the Hearst Award, which the company gives for demonstrated impact. I'm proud of it, though the work I'm most proud of is harder to put in an award citation: changing how editorial teams think about evidence.