More fabric for my dresses

Entrepreneur

About Me

I was born and raised in Nairobi. I met my husband in college and after we graduated we got married. Our wedding ceremony plans were tight due to budgetary constraints. My husband-to-be asked me to make my gown! I did, and that saved us thousands of shillings. Then many friends began to ask for gowns too. Our first baby came and when I wasn't nursing her I was working on several dress designs fro my new clients. I realized I had a God-given talent and immediately set forth labor charges. Today, ladies bring in their fabric and we discuss the dress design and charges , then I sew the dress in three days. Although this has worked, there is still greater potential in buying the fabric myself and making all-size dresses, boys' and girls' outfits for sale in and out of Nairobi. We have seven kids and I love looking after them while working from home. I don't have a maid. Our teenage daughter Michelle loves what I do and has began learning the ropes. Our garage serves as my studio (we don't have a car). My husband doesn't have a regular job. He is training for Christian ministry. All my earnings go into our upkeep and I am unable to raise my own stock. I am happy to learn about Zidisha because this is just what I need.

My Business

Besides the occasional wedding gowns, I design and stitch dresses, make earrings and necklaces to match, handbags, curtains, aprons, bed covers, seat covers and pillow cases. Ladies love the African "kitenge" for weddings. This has been my most popular line of production. I charge an average of $20 per dress. This brings me a monthly income of $270 although in a good month I can make up to$400. All this goes towards our upkeep.

Loan Proposal

I need to buy more fabric for my ready made dresses so that i will not rely on fabric from my clients. I will also need fabric to make more bags and for beadwork. One piece of six yards costs about 1500/- from a piece i can make two dresses. The least number of bags i can get from the same piece is five bags each costing about six hundred shillings.

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