Liberia Cohorts 7 and 8

Transcription

1 Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Certificate Program for Women Entrepreneurs Liberia Cohorts 7 and 8 1

2 Aminata R. Lamin 40, African Creative Enterprise I started out event planning but my budget was so low and I couldn t afford a decorator with what we had, which was $150. So we designed a beautiful wedding and then got another offer at that wedding to do another one for $300, and from there it just never stopped. I still do a lot of weddings and corporate functions. I ve always been very into crafts. Everything I do I just do, I never went to school for it. Before 10,000 Women, I didn t understand what was happening around me in terms of running a business. Also, it s difficult in Liberia people don t expect to have nice things, and they don t get why they should pay a little bit more. Sometimes it s the slow season and you can t do anything about it, but I had to learn how to do even more business in the busy season to make up for the slow times. I also had trouble with pricing customers wouldn t agree on what I thought an item was worth. This kind of work takes a lot of supervision and coordination, and it requires the ability to understand what the customer wants. I get all the details and ensure that our work is all very clean since the beauty of our work is clean lines. That s what I used to get started and that same approach has served me well to this day. I also didn t understand presentation and how important that is. Before, you would walk in here and everything would be scattered, but now you walk in here and it s like, wow, everything looks great. During our busy times we do everything there are four of us working in the shop and we do all kinds of craftwork flower girl baskets, ring bearer pillows, cake toppers just about everything. We even handled the inaugural ball for the Government of Liberia with more than 800 people. We ve gotten contracts with many different organizations including USAID, banks, and different ministries. 10,000 Women helped me learn to understand my potential in terms of running my own business. I m getting a lot more done because of the program. And it s not just benefiting me: I had a meeting with my staff and explained the training and together we worked out how to focus more. For example, before I would go to Ghana to buy merchandise four or five times a year without a good plan, but now we re planning better and doing more business because of it. So what I learned from the program, I passed on to my staff. Everything I learned even the little things, like the importance of having a business card I transferred to them. This helped me recognize my strengths as a businesswoman and helped us rely on each other more. I ve also been working with another 10,000 Women graduate now we re both growing and complementing each other instead of competing with each other. If you make the same top as someone else, that diminishes both businesses. Plans for the Future: 10,000 Women really helped me structure my business and now I know I can take it even further. The program helped me realize that people often gravitate to you if you have self-confidence you do what you know you have to do and don t be afraid to own up to that. I love that I m employing so many subcontractors people who do sewing, cake makers, catering and I m going to work with them a lot more so we can all keep growing our businesses. In a year, I want to be established as a businesswoman who sells products made in Liberia. I want to have a show where we present everything we make after the show I know my business will really be established. 2

3 Gertrude Cooper 28, New Generational Women I started a business with my sister on a farm in 2013that belonged to my father because I m trying to empower women, especially in agriculture. Women in Liberia are very hard working, they go out to the farm and work all day while their husbands stay home. Then the husbands sell the crops and the women get nothing. The more women I employ from the community, the better business will be. When it comes to the market, there is a market for cassava but when we go to the market to sell it, other people can sell it at cheaper prices. So we toured markets and encouraged people to buy from us and told them why they should because our product was of better quality and they did. The other constant is we always need more raw materials to feed the machine so we can keep up with demand. Also, I harvest cassava leaf crops and corn, peanuts and beans but I need a processing center and getting a machine to process the cassava, and an oven too. Now we have 20-30% more profits than we did when we started out.i m planting all year round now. I ve learned a lot from 10,000 Women, especially on how to pay my taxes.i ve also learned about opportunities I didn t have before. I have learned as an entrepreneur how to handle my work and my employees. Also, Chevron came in to assess the situation and gave us a grant to get the land ready. They gave us money for equipment and a processing center. We need it because the way we were handling crops before was not hygienic. When you re working with food, it s best to use a machine. I have 45 people working on the farm. It s very hard labor since we re doing all the work manually now. At some point we ll need a car to transfer everything. Now I ve learned so much I believe I have a lot of knowledge to work with now. Now I can do certain things I didn t do before, like know more about how to deal with competitors. Now we can produce more with less, like doing more marketing and convincing people how good the product is. Plans for the Future: Without 10,000 Women I think I d already be stuck, but since the business is going so well my sister is going to the US to find investors. By exporting we can make much more than we do locally. We feed everyone who works here. We re going to engage other farmers to work with us and we re going to expand the farm so we ll have more crops and employ more people. 3

4 Helen G. Kulue 37, Safety Plus Inc. During the war I was exiled to Guinea. I saw people working in waste management and wondered if that could work in Liberia. After the war, I came back and everyone was looking for food and not thinking about garbage. I had nothing else to do and I thought it could be a means of survival for my kids and me. I couldn t bear to think about prostituting myself. So I thought, what can I do to make a profit in Liberia, and I thought again about sanitation. I had already been picking up garbage for free, but I put some money together and in 2010, I got the garbage business up and running with two wheelbarrows and three employees. Then the business began growing substantially. In addition to not having any money starting out, it s hard for Liberians to understand why sanitation is important. The service wasn t expensive less than a dollar a week and people would sign up but then they wouldn t pay. So to encourage people, I gave them two trash bins for free and that seemed to help. Another challenge is that we re now getting into the organic waste composting business, which is fairly new, so there aren t many people buying it for now. But we re going to launch an initiative in July to get more people to understand the benefits of organic composting. We re going to let people know that there is no chemical composition, and that it s healthier, so it helps you grow healthier crops. I have people try it for themselves and that seems to help the message get through. The financial management part of 10,000 Women helped me get my business in order. Today we have 19 employees and 22 contractors, plus one pickup truck. Also, I realized that in addition to picking up the trash, it could also be turned into something else. We started purchasing recyclables. Today, we recycle organic waste and turn it into organic fertilizer. Right now we do it by hand. A new machine will arrive soon which will make our work easier and more efficient. 10,000 Women taught me how to handle employees and how to teach them to save. I also built a lot of trust by encouraging them to see it as their own business. People start out as collectors but they work their way up; that should be their pride. Promoting people is so important, and it s just as important to be realistic with your team. Everyone wants to be the boss, but you have to manage their expectations. So even though you re not going to be a star athlete, it s better than staying home. It s all about learning to be a good manager. I also learned that my clients are my chiefs, kings and queens. Letting them know how important they are and establishing those relationships is so important. Plans for the future: I m currently serving more than 800 clients most are households and some are small businesses. I want to increase my services and go out to other countries. I really want to export organic waste. In the beginning I thought, am I going to do well with this? I ve learned that I like the business you won t make it if you don t enjoy it. 10,000 Women sees that the needs of women are so great, and we have to do our part to help others out. 4

5 Mamiyaa C. Andrews 37, Wholesale and Retail I originally started my business back in 2003 as a transportation business. I was selling frozen food chicken wings and legs that were imported. Then there were many wars and business wasn t as good. Later, as the business was growing, I got into transportation I got into trucking with many NGOs and others in Liberia. In 2012 I started the construction business and now I m doing transport and construction. Last year we did three private homes. We also do a lot of homes for families that have homes in the US but live here most of the time. At the beginning I had three employees. Mostly I use local suppliers I try to buy locally whenever I can. Before the training I didn t have any idea that I should get a salary, I didn t pay myself. But that was just one of the things I learned. It was also challenging managing a staff. Once I d been working with a lady who had us work up a plan for her house, and then when it was nearly done she wanted the whole thing demolished. Or sometimes you spend so much time sitting with someone and planning and you sign a contract and then after you ve done a lot of work they can t pay you so the work stops, but even then you re not supposed to get angry with the customer. Also we have problems with government contracts so I don t go for them anymore. I have 10 people working for me we build residential housing. Now we always do payment plans to make sure people will be able to pay us. We have to have a deposit before we ll even start work. I also took a good look at the business and decided that I needed to have something else going for when that was slow, so I also have a building where I rent out apartments. That s helpful in case no construction contract comes in. Business is really good when all the NGOs are here but now they re mostly gone so business is slow. When that happens I try to go into business with other companies. The 10,000 Women program helped us know things that affect our businesses how to recognize our problems and set our businesses straight. They also put us on the right track with loans; before I thought you just went into a bank, but they taught us that we have to do a business plan to have a good chance at getting a loan. They also taught me a lot about how to present myself. These are really helpful things that I never knew. Plans for the Future: I m looking forward to doing more real estate. With real estate you need construction it s all related so I started helping people buy properties. If I see the construction business is doing well, I ll buy more properties. I want to start renting to low-income people. That s important because in our country now we have a situation where lots of people can t afford to build a home for themselves. They want to do it but the financial strength is not there. And if I start out selling to that population, I m going to sell even more since there is more demand for low-income housing here. Then I ll sell more expensive properties later. I m working for the customer and at the end of the day I want them to be happy. 5

6 Nyemade F. Dahngbah 32, City Security & Safety Service Since Liberia was just coming off the war, my husband and I wanted to help protect homes and businesses. He works in security for the UN, and we came up with a plan where we would create a security company to help the unemployed in Liberia and help people be safe. So my husband graduated from law enforcement training and received his clearance. Then we found office space and put some savings into it and two years ago we started this, a family business. The whole reason I joined 10,000 Women is that when I started this business it was hard to manage. I didn t know about customer service, financial management, how to talk to clients and how to build up a relationship. Sometimes customers check our rates and then they go with a cheaper company, but hopefully they learn that the service isn t as good with the cheaper ones. We employ 30 guards and nine office employees.i used to have trouble managing my money; I would just hand out cash to employees for jobrelated expenses, no questions asked, but now I make them fill out a form. This makes it easier to balance my books, and it improves accountability for everyone. Also I learned I should be paid, and to keep my accounts separate from the business accounts. Also I pay my taxes on time. All of this has led to a better running business, where I sell my vision to the guards. Now they know who we are and what we stand for. We really provide security with a difference. Plans for the Future: We started with three contracts and now we have six and I know that number will keep rising. I think in five years we will be a very different company with uniformed, plainclothes security who help keep people and property safe. I am excited about providing quality, international service and trying to bring positive changes to security. We are trying to remold the minds of Liberians in terms of safety. 6

7 Sarah J. Kangar 53 - Construction I worked for an NGO for 11 years but when our contracts were terminated, I decided to start a business. In the beginning it was just a carpentry shop. I knew that I wanted to not only have a successful business, but also to employ people in my community. I have some land of my own so I figured that would be helpful in getting the business going since I wouldn t have to find a new site. Then I got involved with the 10,000 Women program and was able to build a whole construction site. My generator was stolen so I had to release the whole staff at that time. In the beginning I was discouraged but the 10,000 Women team came out and encouraged me to get things going again. I knew I had to get more business so I could hire people back, and I knew I needed machines to support the business. In the beginning there were six staff and now there are seven. And when I get a big job, I m able to hire additional staff too. We are getting more and more contracts and our staff are able to attend trainings which helps also. I know this is because of what I learned from the program; I learned about marketing and how to sustain a business on your own, how to create a business plan and how to keep daily records. I was not on this level until after the training. Now I m so in love with the business. The 10,000 Women training helped me realize strategies to grow the business, and to have a loyal staff. The way you talk to them is so important, and when you do things like give them a small gift when they have finished a product, the quality of the product is different. They have a passion for the job. Plans for the future: I want to open another business but I have to get more funding for that.i m also training more ladies to get them more involved in woodwork. Educating them in the practical work as well as on the business side of things is very important. I tell them it s how they can earn money for themselves that they don t have to hang around on the streets, there are other options. We apply for loans, and then while training, they produce items they can sell, and then some of that money is used to pay back the loans. I m proud of 10,000 Women because of what I ve been able to do now, and people want to work with you if you re part of 10,000 Women. 7

8 Agnes E.R. Kamara 56 Environmental Service Enterprise Business overview: I started as a volunteer picking up trash in Monrovia with my husband and about 600 other people. It was a neighborhooddriven effort; there was so much trash around that we had people suffering from mosquitoes and malaria, roaches and rats. It was important for me to do something about it and I thought I could support my family at the same time. So eventually we got some money together and registered as a business. As a smaller business trying to start out, it s much harder to get loans. We needed money for equipment, staff and overhead. It makes it difficult when all you can get is a high interest loan; it makes it much harder to pay it back on time. It was also hard getting people to realize how important it is to not have trash everywhere, since people were used to it. The business was already up and running, but after the 10,000 Women training, there was a real change in the level of business. We collect garbage from houses and offices, and we got more customers because people recognize me, and lenders who saw our success were more willing to loan us money. The business has grown so much that I m able to hire additional contractors when demand is higher than usual. It s nice because, working with us, they have become well trained and can do not only our work but work for others too. And they are all paying taxes. We also used what we learned from 10,000 Women also helped our relations with customers. For example, we are flexible with prices and if you don t have the money, we negotiate so we can build up our customer base. Recently we won an award for growth potential, and President Johnson Sirleaf mentioned our company at the 2014 Ministry of Commerce and Industry s Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Conference. We re well known now and we know how to compete with other businesses; we have the network, that s why people choose to work with us. Plans for the future: I d like to get more equipment so we can grow the business further and keep even more of Monrovia clean. If people are educated about the danger of waste, they ll have better hope and a better future. We will just keep trying to increase our potential. 8

9 Wedour Emily Freeman 36 Bravo Sister Enterprise I started Bravo Sister Enterprise in 2012 because I wanted to own a business that produced local food and consumable foods on the Liberian market. Before, I mostly sold clothing and made some cassava, but now I m going to really emphasize the food side of my business processing and selling it in this same space.working in the clothing business I worked with too many people who were not trustworthy, and I had to travel a lot to buy different materials. But with working in just food, I ll be able to get and make all provisions locally. It s been difficult getting credit and securing contracts because I was trying in many different places, since my business took me all over. But I learned it was easier to be in one place and to focus, and that helped. I also had to spend two hours going to the bush to get ingredients for the cassava and all the things I make with it. I also had trouble from time to time making sales. Since I graduated from 10,000 Women, I ve done a lot more business. The training helped me make good business decisions. I invested all my savings into the business and it s all profit now that s money I spent for the land to process cassava, for a truck and a power saw. I also learned how to decide where I could make the most money. For example, I saw that Nigerian restaurants wanted cassava so I contracted with many of them. And since I already had been dealing with many local groups hospitals, supermarkets, orphanages, and government agencies I already had a good network of people who knew me and who said they love dealing with a woman in business. Plans for the future: I want to just get as many more contracts as I can to expand Bravo Sister Enterprise. I also want to earn enough money for equipment so I can make more food more quickly and efficiently and put that back into the business. I want to provide a valuable service for Liberians where they can buy quality products in their own community. I learned how to save and invest profits back into the business to increase sales. My income when I started was about $3,000 a year, and now it s $9,600, plus I ve tripled my number of employees. I have learned how to manage my money and to keep personal and business money separate. I also learned about creating brochures to let people know about my business, and I advertised on Facebook, which helped a lot. 9

10 The Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women Certificate Program for Women Entrepreneurs is a five-year initiative to provide a business and management education to underserved female entrepreneurs in developing and emerging markets. The program is designed to drive greater shared economic growth, leading to stronger healthcare, education and greater prosperity in the communities where it operates. Global Communities (formerly CHF International) is an international non-profit organization that works closely with communities worldwide to bring about sustainable changes that improve the lives and livelihoods of the vulnerable. Development is not something we do for people; it is something we do with them. We believe that the people who understand their needs best are the people of the community itself. Please visit our website at for more information. 10