I say ‘our’ because the loan has been made out of the profits of bottles sold to you, my customers. So, a massive thank you, thank you, thank you, because you have made it possible for our first entrepreneur in a developing country to receive a loan to support her business. Asiya lives in Pakistan and runs a business hand applying beads and pearls to beautiful clothing, in order to support her children through school. She is the first of many female entrepreneurs I intend to support through these loans, so that they may lift themselves out of poverty with dignity.
I believe in charity, but I believe more in supporting those less fortunate than me. I have seen firsthand what happens when opportunity is not available to someone, despite them wanting to make the situation better for themselves and their family. I was working in Katanga slums in Kampala, Uganda as part of a community based organisation, and watched as mothers, wives, and sisters embraced the chance to learn a new skill in jewellery making and sewing so that they could make a few items to sell at the local craft market, and bring home enough money to feed and clothe their children. This was so empowering to them, that they were able to prioritise their children over their husbands, who would usually take any cash they had and gamble or drink it away. These women wanted to be able to hold their heads high and support themselves, and not take charity and handouts from anyone.
This experience is what has driven me to make female empowerment one of the pillars of my business, and to set up this partnership with lendwithcare, who have the infrastructure in place to make these loans. A donation is made from the sale of every bottle to our lendwithcare account, then we select an entrepreneur and lend the money, and once the loan is repaid, we donate to another entrepreneur. The funds available continue to grow from the sale of bottles of face oil, and so the cycle continues.
Thank you, again, for buying a bottle of oil because without you, there would be no loan for Asiya. You can keep an eye on progress, and also see other loans we make as a business here.
Oh my goodness this is beautiful. I was speaking to a friend today a local small business owner and she expressed her frustration with being an entrepreneur who is a woman of colour and she thought of giving up and I felt so helpless. As a blogger I buy products I feature small businesses but can only do so much and here you are giving back. This genuinely makes me so happy! I will forever be grateful to Paula for introducing me to such a wonderful brand!
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Thank you lovely 🙂
Your comments make this worthwhile x