Start and Improve Your Business - Success Stories 2025
A taste of home: how SIYB training helped Biljana launch her bakery in Bosnia and Herzegovina
After returning to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Biljana Pržulj launched her bakery with the support of SYB training, turning her baking experience into a sustainable business rooted in community and tradition.
15 January 2026
Sokolac, Bosnia and Herzegovina (ILO News) - After many years living and working in France, Biljana Pržulj returned to her hometown of Sokolac in Bosnia and Herzegovina in search of a new beginning. Although life abroad had been stable, something was missing. “Life was orderly, calm and secure — but it did not feel right for my soul,” she says.
Back home, Biljana found herself unemployed and uncertain about her next step. Drawing on her experience in baking and a deep personal connection to food, she began to imagine turning her passion into a business. “The smell of bread has always meant home to me — warmth, safety and a sense of belonging,” she explains.
Her turning point came when she learned about entrepreneurship training offered through the ILO Local Employment Partnerships project funded by the EU. Biljana enrolled in the Start Your Business training programme, unsure of what to expect. “I applied for the Start Your Business entrepreneurial training… and that decision changed my life,” she says.
The training equipped her with practical business skills and renewed self-confidence. “I learned how to develop a business plan and how to believe in myself and in my knowledge,” Biljana recalls. With this support, she and her husband were able to launch Pekoteka ‘K’o kod kuće’, a small bakery offering traditional breads and pastries alongside French-inspired baked goods.
Today, the bakery is known for products that combine quality, craftsmanship and emotion. For Biljana, success is not only about sales, but about creating a place where people feel welcome. “I want ‘K’o kod kuće’ to always be a synonym for quality, but also for a feeling of belonging,” she says.
Biljana encourages others who are considering entrepreneurship to take the leap.
Do not be afraid. Nothing falls from the sky and everything requires effort. Success takes time — but time will pass anyway while you are building your dream.
Biljana Pržulj