Júlia Chambal

Thank you for your loan. It has been disbursed to Júlia Chambal by Hluvuku-Adsema in Mozambique. We are excited to watch this business grow. Over the next 12 - 15 months, Hluvuku-Adsema will be collecting repayments from this entrepreneur and posting progress updates on the Kiva website.

Sra. Chambal's loan is progressing extremely well and she is happy to report she is just a few months away from making her final payment. At her storefront she proudly shows me the variety of merchandise she is now able to offer with thanks to the loan she received.

Sales for her are fairly consistent despite it being winter and a generally slower time. Depending on foot traffic through the market, the storefront is open from approximately 7am-7pm where Julia and her one employee share responsibilities. Julia's husband is not working, so this business provides for them and their five children ranging in age from two years old to 18 years old. Any profits from the business go to maintaining the household and putting the children in school. In addition, this business supports her employee who supports one child.

Julia shares with me that sales of women's shirts and children's clothing are steady, but the most profitable item in the store these days are women's bras of which she has many to choose from (as evidenced in the attached photo). The majority appear to be American brands which are only lightly used.

The business faces two major challenges to greater profits. The first being that the storefront she works from is not enclosed. When it rains she must shut down and each night she carries her merchandise into storage at the main market where she must pay an additional fee to do so. The second is the cost and inconvenience of making three to four trips a month to the capital city of Maputo (30km away) in the local bus.

When asked about her overall feeling about her loan, Julia is quite happy with the opportunity it has afforded her to build and grow a sustainable business year round.

Looking to the future, Julia would like to take a new loan in order to expand her store space, add a bit more merchandise and, most importantly, build an enclosed and secure structure from which to operate.

Julia has successfully repaid her first Kiva loan! Julia used the money to increase her inventory, attracting more clients to her stand, and to pay for the school tuition of her 4 children that are studying. Julia was also able to improve her house, providing more comfort for her children and her newly born grandchild (he was born on 16th of April 2008).

Julia has a small stand in the street, in front of the Boane’s central market, where she sells new and used clothes. She goes personally to the capital city Maputo twice per month to buy merchandize – mainly children’s clothes and sweaters.

Julia has already requested a new loan of MTn 21,000 to keep helping her business grow and her life improve. She would like to personally thank Kiva and especially all her lenders for the support given to her business.