Nane Simonyan: ‘SMART Gave Me the Opportunity to Grow, Engage, and Be Heard’

Five years ago, Nane Simonyan from the village of Akori in Armenia’s Lori Province hopped on the “Akori-SMART train” at the very last moment—just one day before applications closed.

“I hadn’t heard about the first round of admissions and was very upset. I couldn’t miss the next one. When I came to the Center, it felt like I had stepped into a real fairy tale,” says the now-veteran SMART student.

That journey, at age 13, was Nane’s first solo trip outside her small village—to SMART and to the wider world.

For Nane, the most cherished parts of her SMART experience have been art and finance. The first is a hobby; the second, in her words, is “nothing personal, just business.”

She began earning her own money at age 12 by picking raspberries.

“I quickly realized I didn’t like working for a wage, so I started thinking—what product could I create on my own?” she says. “That’s how I began making and selling decorative Easter eggs, then moved on to personalized beaded bracelets, dabbled in blogging, and eventually created a thyme tea brand called Taste of Nature.

“My most recent investment was in poultry farming, but the chickens didn’t lay as many eggs as I’d hoped—so I gave them to my mom,” she adds with a smile. “Every initiative has been profitable in its own way.”

Nane credits the knowledge she gained in SMART’s finance program with helping her launch and grow her ventures.

In parallel with her entrepreneurial work, Nane is studying culinary arts at the Alaverdi State College.

“This year, I really want to receive a COAF scholarship and get accepted into the Yeremyan Culinary Academy. I’m deeply connected to my village, so I plan to return and teach at our local college—I’ve already been invited,” she says.

She dreams of opening her own restaurant in Lori. While she’s willing to work in different places, she insists on one condition: she must always sleep and wake up in her village—Akori.

The Girl with the Aveluk, a rural portrait.

Nane’s transforming her culinary creativity into a profession. From kitchen assistant to server, Nane is mastering every role in the kitchen.

Village life suits Nane. She lovingly cares for household animals and her family’s garden.

The Art of Survival. Thanks to VOMA, SMART Summer 2023 was one epic adventure.

The final stop on Nane’s SMART journey: musical instruments. If she could add a stop, she says she’d choose agrotechnology.

What Nane loved most about drawing is the freedom: “It’s just you, the pencil, and the paper. You can do whatever you want.”

As part of the summer program, SMART students discuss and map out their futures.

Nane admits that SMART has helped her overcome many challenges—one of the biggest being her fear of public speaking.

‍