Starting on a Shoestring

Microloan enables young woman to leave a factory job and open her own shoe making business. Gihan Farag displays her handmade leather bags and shoes. “My salary has tripled now that I own my own business. I am very proud to market my shoes and my skills to different shops and hope to begin exporting,” – Gihan Farag, small business owner

When Gihan Farag left her factory job of eight years to open her own business at the age of 29, she began operations in a most unusual spot: her rooftop. “I didn’t have a workshop, but I needed some place to make shoes,” says Gihan, a member of one of the LEAD Foundation’s all-women borrowing groups. “I used my first loan of 200 L.E. equivalent to $35 to buy models for shoes and other tools and materials.” Since opening shop on a roof in 2005, Gihan has taken out five subsequent loans, increasing in value to 600 L.E. equivalent to $105. She now operates from a regular work space, where she employs three full-time workers, as well as a handful of part-time help, depending on increases in demand. She has diversified her product by making hand made leather bags and wallets. Gihan’s fiancé Rami, even takes part in the operations, as one of her full-time employees. “When I was working in the factory, I had a small salary. Now I am able to take more money at home because I keep all the net profits,” explains Gihan. “My salary has tripled now that I own my own business.” Gihan is building a track-record of excellent repayment history at the LEAD Foundation, bringing her closer to her goal of transitioning from a group borrower to an individual borrower, where she’ll have access to larger sums of money. “I would like larger loans to improve the quality of my shoes, and buy more tools and machinery.”