Refrigerator to store perishable goods in my shop

Entrepreneur

About Me

I was born and raised in the rural part of Sangurur village in Marakwet West District. As the first born in a family of four, I lived a difficult life in which my father was a primary teacher and my mother a farmer of a small scale. My parents faced a lot of difficulty in raising our school fees for the four of us and for our cousin, who stayed at our home because of their low income. Most of the time, we were sent home for lack of fees and we spent most time at home. With the little income my parents generated, they used to save and send us back to school. Our grandmother too offered a hand of support by helping them raise fees: she was a traditional medicine woman and had a few domestic animals, which she could sacrifice for the sake of our school fees.

I joined standard one back in 1999 and did my KCPE in 2006, where I passed with 366 marks out of 500. I was to join Kapsabet National School the following year, but due to high fee payment I joined Kericho High School where the fee payment recurred. The sudden death of my grandmother due to ulcers made my high school education harder due to lack of fees and money for upkeep. With the help of our fundraising and support of my parents, I completed my secondary education in 2010 and obtained a grade of B (plain) with 66/84 points.

In 2011, I joined Kenyatta University, where I am still pursuing my degree in BSc (Biochemistry). Bursaries and HELB loans have been core in paying my university fee as well as for my younger siblings.

My father has been my soul encouragement in life, in that we faced a lot of challenges in life in terms of finance, yet he kept telling me to work hard and persevere for a brighter future. Believing in God and prayers has also been what has been keeping me strong in life. This has really boosted me and gives me hope of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

I started my business at the end of last year where I used to save my pocket money and started buying foodstuffs such as rice and cookies at a lower price, then selling to my fellow students at a profit. I used to buy them at wholesale price, then sell by hawking from one hostel to another. With the profits that I made, I could save for purchase of more goods.

In the culture where I come from, people still don't value education because they are still intact with the tradition. They still believe in traditional customs such as FGM [female genital mutilation].

My younger brother would like to be a civil engineer when he grows up, and my two younger sisters want to be a lecturer and the other a medical doctor.

I do like listening to music most of my time and composing my own songs, since I want to enlighten the community about the benefits of education and encourage them to never give in life, since being hopeful eventually leads to success, hence realisation of your dreams.

My Business

My business provides general home-based commodities. These goods mostly include foodstuffs such as packets of unga [flour/meal], sugar, cooking fats & oils, bars of soap, detergents, sachets of tea and coffee, bread, some cookies such as biscuits and seets, mandazi, cakes in packets, etc. They also includes soft drinks and juices such as soda, quencher, etc.

With the minimum profits I made, I usually saved it for the purchase of more products. Some I use to save for my school fees and pay my employee when I am studying at school. Within a week I could record a maximum profit of 140 US$ and minimum of 30 US$. These profits made have really boosted me as my main source of income. I chose this kind of business since it is located in an area of high population hence high demand of the commodities.

With a matter of time, I increased my shopping stock by purchasing more products from the profits, raised my siblings' fees by helping my parents pay some, then bought more products to keep my business growing and improving the life standard of our home. For example, I bought my family a new home radio from the profit I got, with each getting a pair of shoes and new clothes.

Loan Proposal

I'll use 450 US$ to purchase a refrigerator, which will help store drinks such as soda, milk, juices and perishable foodstuff. I'll also expand my shop by purchasing more goods that will attract more customers. This will help provide a more reliable services to my customers. I expect my business to increase by 12% or more.

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