Boost stock for my growing clothes store

Entrepreneur

About Me

My name is Jacinta, born in Nakuru county in Kenya. I was born typical African family where I lived with my both parents and my brothers and sister all in one house. I grew up helping my parents with their daily chores and went to school, first 8 years of primary school and later 4 years of secondary school.

I got married shortly after finishing my secondary school education. I then relocated to Mombasa where my husband lived. I started my married life as a housewife since my husband had a job and he was the family provider. We were blessed with three kids – two girls and one boy. One girl has cleared her school education but the other two are still schooling. Unfortunately the one who is out of school got addicted to hard drugs and she is now in a rehabilitation center.

We lived happily as a family until 1998 when tragedy struck. This is when I lost my husband and the father of my children after a sudden illness. This crashed my world because I lost my companion and family’s breadwinner. With a very young family I had to think about their survival. My husband was not a man of means and he did not leave much for us save for his three months salary which we got from his employer.

I got a job as a (roadside) hotel waiter where I worked for a few months. The owner was very abusive and the pay was very low. I quit and started buying and selling second hand clothes. I had a friend who was in that business and she taught me on how to run the business.

My Business

I sell second hand clothes in an open market. I normally buy the clothes in bales and then wash and iron them to make them fetch more money. The clothes come from Europe and North America and they are very popular with the locals due to their good quality and friendly cost.

I sell all types of clothes of both sexes and children. This is business I enjoy doing because I have learned all tricks of the trade; moreover it brings food on the table and also gives me money to sustain the family.

I make a modest net income of $50 per week and the business has potential to grow much bigger if supported with credit like what I am applying for in Zidisha.

Loan Proposal

I plan to expand my business by increasing my stock. This will attract more customers to my business. I deal with second hand clothes and I now want to venture into new clothes business.

This way I will be able to attract a new class of people who do not wear second hand clothes. Moreover, the government is phasing out importation of second hand clothes in the next two years and I therefore want to be ready for this change and this is my first step.

Thanks.

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