What started as a hobby for seventeen-year-old Ukrainian Maksym Gavrylenko has led to a very profitable business venture. Lomond School pupil and online gamer fan Maksym has sold his Minecraft server and plans to use his share of the profit to buy his mother, who fled the war in Ukraine, a home. Maksym, who is a boarding house resident at Lomond School since moving from his home nation of Ukraine in 2021, purchased a little used gaming server for £1,000 in 2021. In those two years, Maksym and two of his friends made many popular modifications to the server which resulted in a huge uplift in online players. By moderating the community effectively and creating an enjoyable playing environment, advertisers were attracted to the server which made it increasingly valuable. A lucrative offer was made for their server which Maksym and his two business partners accepted in May 2023.
Maksym has been putting his business intuitions to good use at Lomond School where he has just finished his two-year International Baccalaureate (IB) programme. Lomond School offers two IB programmes; the IB Diploma and the IB Career-related programme (IBCP), which focuses on business, the latter of which was chosen by Maksym. The IBCP comprises a mix of academic courses from the IBDP alongside a career related study, in Lomond School’s case this is a Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Business, with real-life approaches to learning. Maksym was able to use real life examples from his experience with Minecraft to contribute towards the course work as part of his HNC.
Maksym is awaiting his results from his International Baccalaureate Career-related Programme which he has studied since joining Lomond School. Despite achieving success most entrepreneurs can only dream of in their lifetimes, Maksym wants to expand his business knowledge by going to university, having applied to a mixture of UK and overseas universities.
Maksym said: “The IB Career-related programme was a tough but rewarding challenge, made easier as I was allowed to use real life examples in order to complete some of the coursework. I’ve always had an interest in business having worked as a part-time translator and a writer in Ukraine. This, along with invaluable guidance from my brother (who worked for Google) and Lomond School, has ensured I am ready to continue my journey in business. I am very proud that I was able to turn my passion into a profitable business and I plan on treating my mother. As a result of the war, my mother fled her home, leaving her homeless, so to buy her a flat will make all the hours spent on this project worthwhile.
Johanna Urquhart, Principal at Lomond School said: “Everyone at Lomond School is absolutely thrilled at Maksym’s achievements at his young age. He has been a credit to the school and Burnbrae, our boarding house, since arriving in 2021 from Ukraine. His dedication and passionate nature are to be applauded and admired. He is the perfect example of how an IB pupil can take practical, real-life approaches to learning and develop skills and competencies required for lifelong learning. I have no doubt that this won’t be the last we hear about one of Maksym’s business ventures and I wish him well when he ultimately passes his IB with flying colours and joins his first-choice university.”
