We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Viktoriia Gorbachevska. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Viktoriia below.

Viktoriia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

One of the biggest ways we differ from the industry standard is that we never try to make our products ‘fit the mold’ of packaged snacks. In the mass-market world, bars are produced in enormous runs designed to sit in warehouses and on store shelves for a year or more. To last that long, they’re packed with preservatives, stabilizers, and flavorings that mask the fact that the food itself has gone flat. We do the opposite. Arti Bars are handcrafted every week in small batches from nothing but whole nuts, seeds, and fruit. That’s why our bars taste alive—moist, rich, and real. They don’t resemble the dry, anonymous bricks lining store shelves; they’re closer to a fresh homemade meal.

Viktoriia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m Viktoriia, the founder of Arti Bar. Food has always been part of my life, and I’ve always believed that what we eat should feel alive and nourishing. When I came to the U.S. with my family, I was shocked by how difficult it was to find food that felt truly real — most snacks were overly sweet, heavy with seed oils, powders, flavorings, or preservatives. I wanted something I could hand to my kids — and enjoy myself — with complete trust.
That’s how Arti Bar was born. And the difference is undeniable — our bars don’t taste manufactured, they taste alive. Each one is moist, fresh, and vibrant, carrying the true character of its ingredients: the creaminess of real nuts, the brightness of ripe fruit, the depth of cacao. It’s food that feels as if it came from your own kitchen or backyard garden, not from a warehouse shelf.
I’m so proud and grateful to serve my community by creating food that nourishes rather than harms. It means everything to know that I’ve built something people genuinely enjoy — from toddlers to athletes, from those who once relied on processed snacks to the cleanest, most health-conscious eaters. What makes me happiest is knowing that Arti Bar gives people a wholesome alternative that makes their lifestyle healthier and their days easier.
If there’s one thing I want readers to know, it’s this: Arti Bar is not just another snack brand. It’s a mission to change what packaged food can be. In our rush for convenience, we’ve lost the true purpose of food — to nourish us, to make us feel good, and to taste genuinely delicious. Every Arti Bar is proof that convenience and integrity can live together. Fresh, simple, and alive with flavor — that’s the promise we stand for.

Okay – so how did you figure out the manufacturing part? Did you have prior experience?

Yes, we make Arti Bars ourselves. From the very beginning, I wanted to keep the process close and personal because the whole point of this brand is trust and transparency. Arti Bar grew out of one simple but radical idea: that if you start with the best whole ingredients, you don’t need anything else. Just real nuts, seeds, and fruit — delivering natural energy, essential nutrients, and flavor that actually tastes alive. What I didn’t know at first was how different it feels to make something not just for your own family, but consistently and at scale, while keeping every bar as fresh and pure as the very first batch
I didn’t want to outsource production to a co-packer or a big manufacturer because that would mean losing the freshness and control that set Arti Bar apart. Instead, we built our own small-batch process by hand — testing, refining, and creating a rhythm that allows us to deliver bars every week without compromising quality.
One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned along the way is that manufacturing isn’t just about making a product, it’s about protecting your values through every single step.
For me, manufacturing isn’t just production. It’s the heartbeat of the brand.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

I believe what built our reputation is honesty and transparency. From the start, my goal was never to make just another snack bar — it was to create something people could trust with their whole hearts. Food that is simple, pure, and made with real care. When people taste that, they recognize it instantly — because real food, and real intention, can’t be faked.
It’s unbelievable, but people naturally love sharing what feels true to them. What makes me happiest is seeing our beloved customers not only buy a box of bars for themselves, but also a box for someone they love — sending them to friends, family, and the people they care about. That tells me it’s more than a product; it’s something people want to share as an expression of love.
Arti Bar was created with community in mind, and in the end, it’s our community that has truly built this brand. That kind of reputation isn’t bought, it’s earned through trust, consistency, and the joy of creating food that people are proud to pass along.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.artibars.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artibar_

Image Credits

Julia Dawn Photography