Meet The Clients Solange

Solange lives in Rwanda and owns the Mama Esthetique tailoring shop.  A few years ago she was struggling to keep her tailoring shop afloat and her three children in school.

But with help from Opportunity International’s loans and business training, she was able to purchase machinery and materials to expand her business, which now includes wedding garment rentals.

The more money we borrowed, the more our business expanded,” Solange says. “Now we can get ourselves more of the things we need.

Solange can now afford school fees not only for her children, but for her younger sister (who is in her last year of university) and teenage niece. Solange also supports both her parents and in-laws.

In addition to building her tailoring shop, Solange offers classes that help people in her community develop retail businesses of their own. So far, she has taught about 70 people - six of whom she provided free tuition.

Solange’s graduates are finding success in various capacities. Solange hired some of them to work for her, while others went on to start their own retail businesses.