Developing a small business requires a lot of careful planning and future forecasting. Running a food business and lacking the merchandise to do so can exert a heavy toll on a businessman Gabriel Diops’s profit earnings and his family expenses. The luring tactic of his business is that customers prefer to come to his store due to its cheaper products. Mr. Diop is a bartender by profession but he is ardently looking to break into the business arena and a Zidisha loan can help achieve his aspirations. Sam Gant, our Client Relationship Intern had the opportunity to interview him a few days ago. Below is his account of the meeting that had taken place:
My name is Sam Gant I’m one of the Client Relationship Managers active in Senegal right now. On Friday June 8th I had the pleasure of meeting Gaby in his home in Parcelles, where he showed me the bar he and his brother invite their neighbors too and told me more about his future plans. Gaby is enormously popular and well-known in his neighborhood, which explains why when myself and another volunteer visited his house there was already a crew of regular patrons passing the afternoon there.
At the moment he stocks the two Senegalese national beers, Flag and Gazelle, as well as several imported wines, which they serve to neighbors and visitors in the sunny courtyard of their home. Gaby’s goal is to refurbish a free-standing establishment where he can sell bottles of alcohol for carry out as well as dry goods, but he explained to me that construction was stagnant over the course of the recent elections and has only recently gotten back on track.
He anticipates completing his store within about 2 months. He remains very grateful to Zidisha lenders for their confidence and patience, and hopes to keep you apprised of further developments.
