Joshua    Dec 17, 2015

I am very thankful for all those who have been funding my loans, and those who are doing it for the first time in funding the current one. may God bless you for making it work for me in my business

Joshua    Nov 26, 2015

Hi zidisha , First I want to thank God to enable me finish paying my loan. I was trying again to reapply but in the first step of filling in my ID number it kept on bouncing back saying the number has been taken with the yellow highlight, could somebody help me find out what might be wrong.

Joshua    Nov 12, 2015

Hi zidisha family, I would like to appreciate your great help to me, I know how these loans you've been giving has been of help to me, that is why I've been paying my loan back gladly and I hope my life is to change the more with this kind of help. I just wanted to update the zidisha team that, despite all the challenges I've gone through, I've seen some doors opening up for more exhibition to exhibit my art work, like this saturday 14/11/2015 and I am looking forward to sell.
thanks and God bless

KM    Aug 22, 2015

Thank-you for taking the time to update us. I'm glad that you've been able to access some new opportunities through exhibitions, although tourism is down. I hope that you will continue to find many opportunities to share your work with the world.

Joshua    Jun 27, 2015

Hi,
I want to take this opportunity to apologize to my lenders and the entire zidisha family for taking this long before updating you on how things are working out for me. first I would like to say that the sale has been a bit low since we began experiencing insecurity in our nation due to terrorist attacks, this has caused tourism industry not to be doing well as before, though now we've started seeing some bit of changes and hopefully we believe things will start working well soon. For the past three months, through a friends' invitation I have been attending local exhibitions and I noticed that is the kind of opportunity I've been missing. through this I have been able to know new customers and more doors of exhibitions are opening up. thank you so much zidisha for your great support.

KM    May 10, 2015

Hello! How is everything going these days?

• Joshua    Jun 27, 2015

  Hi, Kilmeny
  Sorry!, I didn't notice this earlier, I am doing good with my family I hope you too, I went down sometime back in business but now picking up. thank you for your concern

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Brian    Apr 24, 2015

Joshua, I hope your business is going well. Thank you for making your repayments on time - you have been very faithful in doing that.

• Joshua    Jul 3, 2015

  I am very happy to hear from you, the business is picking up, I just got an order from iceland. Thanks so much for your great support.

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Kerry Tiedeman    Mar 9, 2015

My name is Kerry Tiedeman and I am a Client Relationship Intern for Zidisha in Nairobi, Kenya. Today I had the opportunity of meeting Joshua at his art studio just outside of Nairobi County.

Joshua has worked as an artist for over twenty years. He moved to Nairobi in 1989 o look for work from Kisumu, which is city in Western Kenya. When Joshua moved he found a job painting at African Heritage, which began in 1973 as a producer and seller of African handicraft and artwork. After years of working for different outlets painting and constructing different types of handicrafts, he finally opened his own studio partnering with a friend he met at African Heritage.

Joshua and his partner Samson's studio is on the roof of an apartment building in the outskirts of Nairobi. It has an incredible view of the surrounding neighborhood. It's a small shed and walking in there are olive tree and sandstone bowls, giraffe pencil holders, spoons, vases and many other handicrafts all either already painted or awaiting for either Joshua, Samson or Samson's cousin to paint them with incredible designs of animals and African sunsets.

Normally Joshua and his partner receive orders from art brokers which then sell the items at local and international markets to tourists. In order to finance the purchase of the bowls or spoons, Samson would have had to depend on advances from the brokers, which made it easier for brokers to pay them lower prices for the items. Fortunately with the help of Zidisha lenders, Joshua can purchase the items beforehand and have more control over setting prices. This is leading him and his partner to think of cutting out the middlemen and head to the markets on their own, as well as find international buyers. (So if anyone is interested) Their pieces can be custom made and are truly beautiful. Before I left the studio I had ordered two bowls and asked them to paint a specific design I had seen on their other pieces and they happily obliged. They also have a blog and facebook page to attract buyers.

Joshua's wife also is an entreprenuer and with the profits from his studio and the cybercafe she runs, they are able to support their children. It was actually his wife, Dorkas who introduced him to Zidisha. She met a former Client Relationship Intern in a financial meeting. Dorkas is from the coast and since I had just come back from Mombasa, we talked about the great food and the beautiful sea. She met Joshua here in Nairobi at church. I am starting to think I need to go to church because so far that is where the majority of the borrowers I have met have met their significant others.

Both Joshua and Dorkas are optimistic about their businesses and hope to grow and expand them. They are very grateful to Zidisha lenders for helping the purchase the materials they need to run sucessful businesses.

Joshua    Mar 8, 2015

Halo!
Once again very thankful for how zidisha has been helpful to me, and I hope all will continue to be well. I wanted just to inform my lenders that it has not been smooth all the way considering that i wanted to diversify in different businesses, though out of every process I have gone through makes me strong and facing my future with hope. The cyber cafe is picking up, my Arts studio is also doing ok but with lots of challenge, at this time tourism is not doing very good here in kenya and this makes selling our items locally to be very hard but I believe all shall be well.

Joshua    Oct 21, 2014

Halo!
Thanks a lot for your assistance it helped me come back to my page, I am once again grateful for the loan given to me by zidisha family, it has put me on a serious path of business, despite the little challenges with it, I am optimistic. thanks a lot my people

Joshua    Sep 5, 2014

Hallo, I am doing good and everything is working out well despite the little challenges in the world of business. all these makes me knocks some new doors of opportunities, the cyber is doing well and my Arts business. Thanks Kilmeny, it always feels good to see the concern you have for me, it motivates me the more. thanks to all zidisha team.

KM    Sep 3, 2014

Hello - It is always nice to get a message from you. I hope that all continues well with you and yours. take care.

Joshua    Jun 12, 2014

Hi, every one!, I want to thank you all for being part of the progress i am seeing in my life. I am very grateful that you have helped me this much, especially my lenders. thank you very much, Kilmeny for keeping me in your thoughts, i am happy still you remember me, i am also happy that i am within the scheduled time to pay my loan. I thank God for enabling me to do it in time.
Stay blessed my people.

Joshua    Apr 10, 2014

Hi, my good people lenders, i hope all goes well with you. first let me apologize for being quite for along time. this due to tight schedule trying to make sure that every business runs well. once again i want to say thank you for your support. it is because of your hand of support in all these i am doing. let me say again that I've missed communicating with you. this is to Kilmeny, the cyber is doing great and i am diversifying the more into some other businesses. God bless you for your great support, small or big

• KM    Jun 11, 2014

  Hi there, I'm glad to know that your cyber cafe is getting good business, and that your own artistry continues to sell. Thank-you for your kind words. I hope that the summer brings you lots of happiness!

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Joshua    Dec 24, 2013

Hi, my great people, Lenders, i am grateful once more to be in touch again with you, It has been long since I wrote any comment on how my business is doing.
First I would like to thank zidisha family for bringing me this far in business, at this juncture I would like to inform you that I am thinking on how to diversify into some more businesses. so far I began a cyber cafe which my wife is fully in charge of and i can say that some rays of hope. thank you so much zidisha family for this good work you are doing.

• KM    Apr 5, 2014

  Hello! I hope you are your family are well. I am happy to read your news, and hope that your work and your wife's cyber cafe are both prospering. Thank-you for your steady repayments.

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Joshua    Nov 1, 2013

Hi, all my lenders, thank you very much for this second loan that you've funded, it has made my mind to go beyond the normal perimeter of how i usually think, I am more aggressive than how i was, more marketing, more creativity and more ventures on how i can compliment with other business. thank you very much.

Joshua    Oct 27, 2013

Hallo!
Thank great people, my lenders, specifically Brandon, Laidas, Pillango and MattLondon. Whatever and whichever steps I'll be making from where i am at the moment, it will be because of your great support towards my business, may you be blessed in all you lay your hands to do in life. may you multiply in everything.

Joshua    Oct 27, 2013

Hello!
Kilmeny, I am very happy to notice that you are one of my lenders, my prayer is that you increase in all you do. i hope i will be correct if i say we've talked with you more especially on the things i make (bowls). thank you very much for every support you are and you will be giving me.

• KM    Oct 27, 2013

  Yes, you are correct, we did exchange a few e-mails. I'm sorry that I could not go ahead with making an order from you, it just turned out to not be the right time. But I'm happy to learn that you are doing well with your work, and am interested to learn of the plans for your wife also opening an enterprise.
  I wish you good luck in having your loan funded quickly!

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KM    Oct 26, 2013

Hello!
I am hoping to upload some more money to Zidisha by the end of next week, and would like to increase my loan to you, but I am thinking perhaps by the end of next week it will be filled even without any additional help from me! We will see.
I am really happy to be able to make even a small contribution towards your enterprises.

Joshua    Oct 20, 2013

I am very thankful for all that you are doing me, all my lenders Brian, Jouni, goodwithuotgod and Brandon, I am not where i was because of your act of kindness to me. and it is my prayer to God the creator that, your trust in me will bring about the real fulfillment we both desire, God bless you, may you be surrounded with success and increase in all that you do.