How Stunner grew from 7k to 85 million views with Photoroom
Life before Photoroom
Relocated their business with no photography equipment
Manually removed backgrounds, spending precious hours
Inconsistent images made shirts look less appealing
Creative projects stalled while they tried to fix basic visuals
Life with Photoroom
Clean product photos boost buyer confidence and sales
Quick, one-tap background removal saves hours each week
Freed time fuels creative visuals, hitting 85M+ views on Instagram
No costly studio needed - two shirt sales covers their Photoroom yearly subscription
Reinvests savings and energy into filming matches, hosting events, and expanding the brand
In 2017, Polina discovered something surprising when she first moved in with Serge: a small mountain of vintage football shirts crammed into every corner of their new shared flat. Serge had been collecting these pieces of football history for years, and his ever-growing stash was on the brink of taking over their home. Neither of them imagined at the time that this shared love for football (and its iconic shirts) would become a business that would survive war, displacement, and countless obstacles—only to flourish in a brand-new city.
An unexpected calling
What started as a simple plan to list the football shirts on eBay turned into something bigger as soon as Polina’s creative vision took hold. Rather than simply photographing shirts laid out on the floor, she styled them into everyday outfits, took film photos, and began to share their uniqueness online. Sales trickled in, and then picked up. By 2019, they had established Stunner, a vintage football shirt brand operating out of Kyiv, Ukraine.
They opened a physical store to connect with customers. They dreamed of improving their store and growing their business beyond sales. Then, in February 2022, mere hours before missiles fell on Kyiv, Polina and Serge left Ukraine with nothing more than a two-week plan to visit a friend for business in Brussels. They never returned home.
New city, new challenges
Once it became clear they couldn’t return safely to Kyiv, the couple faced the hardest choice of their lives: abandon their old life or try to rebuild from scratch. Family and friends in Ukraine encouraged them to stay abroad, stay safe, and keep Stunner alive.
All their professional equipment stayed behind in Kyiv: mannequins, lights, backdrops, everything. Even worse, most of their vintage shirts were either stored or sold off so they could afford basic living costs on the road.
“We lost everything, our store, our flat, and most of our stock. Suddenly, we were abroad with 40 football shirts and no plans.”
– Polina Vynohradova, Co-founder, Stunner Media
From Brussels to Italy and finally to Manchester, Polina and Serge found themselves improvising constantly to replenish their stock and keep their love for football alive. They added new creative dimensions to Stunner, filming live football matches and covering local clubs.
When they finally settled in Manchester, they took the biggest leap yet: opening a second physical store. But with a new store comes new challenges.
“Back in Kyiv, we had a routine, proper lighting, all the gear. In Manchester, we invested everything into just having the store and had nothing left for photography.”
– Serge Shcherbyna, Co-founder, Stunner Media
They also wanted to turn their new store into a community space that celebrated football culture in new ways.
“We wanted more than just a store. We wanted to create a football hub that doubled as an oasis of culture and creativity. A space where we could make screenings, art, and exhibitions for fans and creators.”
– Polina Vynohradova, Co-founder, Stunner Media
With limited funds and no equipment, they needed a tool to capture inventory and a visual sense of community for their website and social media, without compromising on quality. With this, they set out to find the perfect solution.
Rebuilding Stunner’s creative vision, with Photoroom
The couple tried some apps before discovering Photoroom. “The results didn’t always look good. They were not exactly website material. And it also took a very long time to process everything manually,” Polina shares.
They’ve stuck with Photoroom for a few reasons:
Accurate background removal
Polina and Serge immediately loved Photoroom’s precision. Unlike other apps, “Photoroom easily removes background from our photos and gives the most clear results even for intricate objects like my hair, which is fluffy,” shares Polina, adding that “Other apps just remove parts of my hair and make me look semi-bald.”
Having a one-stop creative toolkit
With about 200 shirts in stock, Photoroom’s easy background removal and AI-powered attention to detail lets them replicate the slick look of a studio shoot, without actually needing one. Polina and Serge also use Photoroom to layer backgrounds and motion blur effects to produce eye-catching visuals.
Fresh creative content
As Stunner pivoted toward short, engaging content, Photoroom unlocked a new level of creativity. Polina recalls making one reel for Stunner’s Instagram using Photoroom for the special effect: “It went viral. We gained 67,000 views in 24 hours, and people kept asking how we achieved that smooth effect. Photoroom, of course!”
“We needed a tool to easily remove background from our photos, and Photoroom has been very handy from the beginning. It’s still a critical part of our content creation process, for editing our product photos and creative reels for Instagram.”
– Serge Shcherbyna, Co-founder, Stunner Media
Stunner today: time saved, a community built
Despite opening during a chaotic time in their lives, Stunner’s second store has become a true community hub, hosting exhibitions, screenings, and even offering free workspace to local artists.
Polina and Serge keep stunning their audience with beautiful visuals, using Photoroom as their trusted visual partner that:
Skyrockets social media engagement
Stunner’s Instagram reels, many of which involve Photoroom’s effects, have collectively pulled in 85 million views in one year—an unimaginable number for a small, two-person outfit that previously gained about 7,000 views.
Saves money on product visuals
Armed with Photoroom, Stunner now creates freely without overspending. As Serge shares, “Renting a studio or pro lighting would be costly. But selling two shirts covers our Photoroom yearly subscription. It’s a healthy exchange of investment.”
Builds trust with aesthetics
Clear, consistent images on their website help customers feel confident ordering online. Serge points out, “High-quality product photos show we care about each piece, and that builds trust right away.”
Saves time for creative freedom
Freed from the grunt work of manual photo editing, the couple have time to travel, cover more matches, and keep producing inventive content. “Every new feature in Photoroom pushes our creativity further,” says Polina.
“Photoroom is so good that it’s boosted my capabilities as a creative business owner. I can look at all these tools in the app, experiment with them, and they’ll trigger an idea I never thought I had.”
– Polina Vynohradova, Co-founder, Stunner Media
Looking ahead
Polina and Serge admit they aren’t big on five-year plans—life taught them how quickly everything can change. But one thing’s certain: Stunner will keep adapting and experimenting, sharing vintage football culture with fans far and wide.
For the couple who left Kyiv with nothing but 40 shirts, Stunner is more than a business. It’s a testament to resilience, creativity, and the power of community. And with Photoroom in their pockets and a fresh wave of viral reels on deck, Stunner is poised to keep inspiring football lovers and small business dreamers around the world.
“If you’re just starting out your business, or even if you’ve lost everything, keep going and don’t be afraid to take risks. Small steps build big futures. That’s how we’ve rebuilt, one day at a time.”
– Polina and Serge, founders of Stunner Media
Keep up with Polina and Serge’s work with the Stunner store on Instagram.