Relishio

By Tom Mack

 Recently I spent some time in the country of Ukraine, while there I decided to seek out budding entrepreneurs in the rural countryside villages to see for myself the impact of micro loans. What I found is that when people have the opportunity to go into business for themselves, particularly in impoverished communities, that poverty can be averted.

I believe that entrepreneurship is the key to lifting individuals, families and communities out of poverty. In developing countries being in your own business is often the only way out of poverty.

Myself, I am in the finance business and am very interested in how financing impacts the developing world. As a business owner myself I am also looking for opportunities to give back, ways to give another entrepreneur a leg up.

Micro loans are loans made to poor entrepreneurs living in poverty who are not considered bankable. These individuals lack collateral, steady employment and verifiable credit history. They can not meet even the most minimal qualifications to gain access to traditional business credit.

In Ukraine, the rural countryside is predominately farmland with a few small houses (called dachas) scattered in between. Gas stations are scares, it is best to keep the tank full, you ever know when that will be the last station you see all day.

In larger villages you will find the Bizarre. Its the central marketplace, an outdoor flea market where merchants set up their shop daily. Their spaces are small and seem to lock up securely at night.

People sell produce grown on their farms or in their yards. Some had dairy products like milk, cream, butter and cheese. Others sold eggs and assorted chicken parts. There was even someone selling fish which is pretty scary considering the nearest ocean is hundreds of miles away and the only river is the Dnieper which flows down from Chernobyl Russia.

Other merchants displayed merchandise they had purchased - presumably in bulk / wholesale and were selling it at retail. Its very interesting to note that these merchants tend to be specialists in what they sell. For example, a merchant who sells ladies jeans and tops would not sell anything else. Someone else sells coats, another sells bras, another sells dresses and yet another sells socks.

In the line of hygiene products you can buy soap, shampoo and toothpaste from one vendor but will need to go down the isle to buy a toothbrush. I know - I had to do it. And by the way “dental floss” does not seem to exist there.

Interesting merchants in the Bizarre included someone selling pet food for cats, dogs, birds and pigs. Someone was selling plumbing parts for faucets, sinks and toilets. Even tools and auto parts. You name it, you can find it. The bizarre is kind of like an outdoor Wal-Mart with a dozens of individual merchants.

Many people in these villages are poor and to a large extent live off their land. Jobs are few and the pay is low. Poverty is a chronic condition for much of Ukraine, the one thing these people need to transform their lives is an “Opportunity.” One such opportunity is to start or expand their own business but that requires money.

But where can this budding entrepreneur come up with 5000-7500 UAH ($1,000-$1,500 US) necessary to start a business or expand their current business? The answer can be found in micro loans.

Knowing the solution and having the ability to do something about it are often two different things, until now. I lend to entrepreneurs all over the world through Kiva. Kiva is an organization who helps put individuals like you and me together with entrepreneurs in the developing world so that we can make a difference.

Kiva lets you lend to a specific entrepreneur in the developing world - empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty. Its easy, you choose an entrepreneur, loan as little as $25 then receive updates and get repaid as the business succeeds. Each entrepreneur is hard working and hopes to create a sustainable livelihood. All they need is a small loan.

I just made a loan through Kiva to Olga Gryaznova in Simferopol, Ukraine. Olga lives with her mother and sister. She owns a small booth at the central market and sells womens clothing, mostly terry cloth robes. Due to good marketing strategy, reasonable mark-up and renewed assortment, she is able to attract many clients.

Her gross revenue is about 13,000 UAH per month ($2,600 US). The net income is about 2,000 UAH ($400 US). Olga has been working in this business for 12 years. At that time she just could not find any other job. Being a very responsible and honest person she was able to start and develop this business to provide for herself, her mother and her sister.

Olga would like to get a loan for 5,000 UAH ($1,000 US) to buy more terry cloth robes and increase her sales. She hopes that increased sales activity will generate the funds they need to fix their house.

When you make a loan, you are helping a real person to make great strides towards economic independence and to improve life for themselves, their family, and their community.

I have learned first and the importance of micro loans and how a small amount of money can change someones life, lift a family out of poverty and empower a communality to be self sufficient.

We just started a lending team at Kiva, right now we have a handful of lenders and were growing every day. The team is named after our business “Super Easy Credit” I hope you will join us. A link to our team and my Kiva portfolio is available on our website.

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Tom Mack simplifies business credit. Find out more about business credit and get his popular FREE Special Report “Top Ten Credit Offers Any Business Qualifies For” available at: => http://SuperEasyCredit.com

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