Name
Christine Wanjiru
Member since
December 2014
On-time repayments
53 installments • 58%
I am Chistine Wanjiru Yusuf, born in Thika near Nairobi in a family of three – all girls. I come from a poor background and I grew up without any luxuries. I went to school up to secondary school but I could not further my education due to lack of funds.
Due to serious poverty at home, I decided to move very far from home to Mombasa which is more than 500 kilometers away. With about $2, (yes 2$) I bought sweets and balloons that I started hawking on the streets of Mombasa. I was lucky to get accommodated at church where I stayed for 2 months and then rented a small house.
I did hawking business amid harassment from the local government and finally saved enough money through merry-go-rounds and other initiatives and opened a phone accessories shop. I also enrolled for a part-time computer course to bring myself up to date with ICT.
I buy and sell mobile phone accessories in my small outlet in Mombasa town. I deal with items like phone batteries, earphones, covers etc. The items are quite popular with the masses especially with the youngsters. The country is experiencing a mobile phone explosion and I wanted to get a share of the pie and that is the main reason I ventured into this business.
The competition is very stiff but I am glad I have kept going due to hard work and the network of loyal clients that I have build over the years. My net income is about $125 a week which I use to pay my bills and support my family back home. My next move is to start selling mobile phones next year.
I started selling mobile phone in addition to mobile phone accessories early this year and the results have been very encouraging. I have managed to double my income from the business in the last two months.
I now want to venture into the smartphone market since these type of phones has become very popular with the masses. There is an explosion of internet usage in this region and I believe my timing is perfect. With this loan, I can get a stock of half a dozen smart phones to give me an entry point to the market.
I am hoping to build on this stock and be a big supplier of the same within a short time. I am quite certain that this will be a resounding success.
Positive
2
Neutral
None
Negative
None
Project Type
Classic Loan
Disbursed amount
$264.00
Date disbursed
Feb 16, 2015
Repayment status
On Time
Projected term
8 months
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