Our Mission

Our founder, Fedia Kourbatov, got his vision for Baba Bags at age 20 from a bag his grandmother brought to Chicago from Ukraine in 2018.  When Fedia would come back home from college he enjoyed occasionally going to the grocery store with his mother to spend a little extra quality time with her (Yes, he's a mama's boy). On a couple of these trips, he observed that while his mother shopped, the organic cotton bag garnered countless compliments on its effortless fashion and how many grocery items it could hold. He also recognized that because of its compact structure, his mother would keep it in her pocket or purse allowing her to always remember her bag, unlike her other bulky reusable gear.

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Fedia quickly saw an incredible opportunity to celebrate his Ukrainian culture and eliminate thousands of plastic bags by sharing his grandmothers’ beautiful bag with the world. He immediately got to work in his University of Oklahoma dorm room! Having gotten the idea from this grandmother’s bag, Fedia felt compelled to start a social enterprise and dedicate it to his grandmothers, Larysa, Valia, and Paraska and center it around what his grandmothers always gave him: love, attention, and care. He believes if Baba Bags gives the same grandmotherly love, attention, and care to our customers, our planet, and Ukraine, together we can eliminate millions of plastic bags while offering transformational support to non-profits that are doing their part to make our community and our world a better place.