It all started with $400 and a single knitting machine - how a knitting factory that is known in Ukraine and abroad works in Brovary

The largest knitwear factory in Ukraine, the private enterprise Rito, has been successfully operating in Brovary, Kyiv Oblast, for many years.  The clothes produced by this factory are popular not only in Ukraine but also abroad.

Tetiana Abramova, the founder and head of the company, proudly calls it a laboratory of innovative knitwear. She demonstrated to UNN journalists the full cycle of production of quality clothing, from modeling by a designer, through the yarn process, to delivery of the finished product to suppliers.

It all starts with a thin thread

"This is our pride, this is our own production. This is where it all starts. It starts with a thin thread, from which we then knit various interesting things on these smart machines. We have our own trend bureau, where designers and constructors work. All their ideas are implemented and knitted at our production," Tetiana Borysivna begins the tour.

Abramova proudly demonstrates the workshop with knitting machines, and explains that, according to some experts, they are as complex as spaceships.

 "These are very smart machines made by Stoll. This is a 150-year-old German concern that develops some of the smartest knitting machines. They say that knitting machines are very similar in design to a spaceship. This is because they have a lot of different small, tiny mechanisms. There are several hundred of them. And these needles have to work in such a way that they grab the thread. And this thread makes the weave," explains the factory manager.

Continuing the tour, Tetiana tells us that their products are successfully sold in the United States. She adds that the factory produces knitwear under two brands: Rito and 91Lab. Rito, she says, is a brand of more versatile knitwear, and 91Lab  is a brand with the slogan "Knitwear as Art." And this is true, because the products under the 91Lab brand have an exquisite design, and some are decorated with motifs of Maria Prymachenko's works or elements of brokariv embroidery, which was widespread in the Kyiv region in the 19th century. 

The fashion designers' office is in full swing - they are engaged in real art and are working on the fall-winter 2025-26 collection in front of journalists.

"When the girls come up with a collection, they think of more than just clothes. They are engaged in art. We have our own cycle. We have to follow it because, for example, when we export, we work according to the laws of global retail. For example, in February, we should already show the summer 2026 collection," Tatiana Abramova talks about the peculiarities of the fashion business.  

Dissonator, tartan - mysterious terms from the field of knitwear production

Have you ever heard the word "dissonator" used as a job title? This is the first time we have heard of such a specialist. And this is an important person in the clothing industry, because it is these specialists who program the machines for the production of the final product, indicating where exactly the right threads and the right color should be used, as well as which loops should be knitted.

"In fact, it's really called a dissonant, a very difficult profession. Some people say that these are IT people. No, they are IT people, but they have a lot of experience and knowledge in knitting, they know how to do things. They know how to make a needle take the color of a thread, or to make it spill over another needle. So it's a very complicated story," explains the factory manager.

He immediately demonstrates an incredibly beautiful collection of knitwear, which was inspired by the Maria Priymachenko Museum.

In general, knitwear production is a complex process that includes a number of important stages. In particular, after the fabric is ready, it goes to a special room where it is subjected to mandatory heat treatment.

At the next stage, we cannot do without a machine called a ketel. It is with the help of the hemming machine that the garment parts are sewn together and we get a finished knitted garment with a neat hemming seam.

After that, the finished product undergoes quality control and is certified to be shipped from Brovary to all cities of Ukraine. And some batches are exported abroad.

Inspired by a dress with swallows

Ms. Tetyana is a very energetic woman who is in love with the soybean business. But still, how did she manage to create and scale a successful production?

She is originally from Luhansk. Her father was once transferred to work in Brovary. Then she decided that this was her second homeland.

"Everything happened to me by accident. I was finishing my postgraduate studies at the Hetman Economic University. My mother was a doctor, and a girl came to her house to thank her and brought her a skein of yarn. My mom said: what am I going to do with it? And she replied: If you have a daughter, I can knit her a dress. And she knitted a beautiful dress with swallows.

At that time, in the early 90s, there was nothing interesting. And business is always born where there is a shortage: of goods or services. And so, when I saw this dress, I really wanted to make a lot of such dresses for all women. It all started with $400 and the first knitting machine," Tetiana recalls.

She is also proud that her factory is located in Brovary, a city where the authorities are interested in developing entrepreneurship.

"First of all, it is a very powerful city with intelligent people, because there are a lot of sophisticated enterprises here. It is focused on people's lives. It has a very cool infrastructure, and you know, to be honest, even though they say it is a satellite city of Kyiv, yes, but it is a city in itself, and you can live your own vibrant life in it. And secondly, we have a government that hears us. You may be surprised, but I went to see the mayor (Mayor Ihor Sapozhko - ed.), he listened to me, and he gave me feedback.

I've been a resident of Brovary for many years and I don't want to move," Tatiana Abramova concluded the factory tour with inexhaustible optimism and faith in Brovary and Ukraine.