Is this the first company that you have started, and what drove you towards it?
Yes, this is our first business. Sana learned tailoring 6 years ago, but she kept this skill, to sew clothes for her own and her children, sometimes she makes repairs for the people of her village, she was working on an old sewing machine, and wanted to improve her skills and so do laila, as for the rest of the ladies, they were interested in participating in such work.
How did you finance your start-up operations and how long did it/will it take for the company to become self-sustainable?
In the beginning They were working on an old sewing machine, and they used their personal saving to buy the fabric and equipments needed, but after they got deeply into the work they decided to get a loan to buy new machines more suitable for the textile work, with the help of the Village Business Incubator which helped them to prepare the business plan from and submit the loan’s application to the Syrian Fund For Agriculture that works under the umbrella of the "Syria Trust For Development".
What are your major products and services and how are they unique in your business sector? What is your competition?
The ladies produce a collection of artistic bed linen, cushions, dolls and table runners. They have been supported in their design and creative process by Ms. Martine Cieutat, an international artist famous for her stunning interpretation of the colors and atmospheres of Syria in her textile works. Ms. Iman Abrash, Martine's trusted assistant has provided continuous support to the ladies who are now developing new, amazing designs on their own taking inspiration from their fantasy as well as from the old civilizations of Syria.
How did you first launch your product/services?
The uniqueness of The design and the high quality fabric make this products worthy to be sold in Damascus market, a contact was initiated with the Manager of the Four Seasons Hotel who expressed an interest in buying and displaying the products, in addition to the participating in the exhibitions organized by the Village Business Incubator, were a huge opportunity to promote their products between the foreign community in Syria who show a big interest in their products.
Who are your clients and how many do you have? How are you focusing on expanding your user community?
Mr. Samer Kozah, a famous jewelry designer in Damascus, Mr. Samer has art works (painting and bijouterie) gallery along Bab Sharki Street in Old Damascus. The customers of Mr. Kozah are tourists who appreciate Syrian fine handicrafts and have the purchasing power to afford a high quality product. Mr. Kozah, who has visited the VBI in Lattakia, is very happy to support the VBI work. In this regard, Mr. Kozah offered the VBI beneficiaries showroom where Alwardghan products displayed.
Wakil house is an old Arabic house, it was renovated and prepared to receive tourists ambassadors…etc, it was contacted by the VBI Marketing Officer to display or use these textiles to put it on the bed or decorate the rooms.
How do you measure the success of the company?
The quality of their products have increased since they got the training which allowed them to sell their products for different markets and in higher prices also the demand on their products have increased.
What was the biggest challenge in starting an innovative business in your country and how did you overcome that?
It was not familiar for the rural women to work into a group, because they don’t have team work skills, and since their customers are almost foreign people, it was very difficult for them to communicate with their customers, but by the training provided by the VBI team, and the direct support from the VBI Local Promoters in the exhibitions they could overcome these troubles. Furthermore the designs were a little bit strange for the local taste. Therefore we had to target another markets in Damascus and the nearby Sallah Al-Dien castle to overcome this problem.
How have you benefited from business incubation? (E.g. infrastructure, knowledge development, networking with other businesses/traders, other)
The Village Business Incubator supported the ladies to get the finance, market study, business plan, managerial and technical training, promotion materials and find marketing channels.
With hindsight, are there any particular lessons or messages that you wish you would have known when you started up your company, and which you would like to share with fellow entrepreneurs?
After this experience the ladies became more independent and learned how to organize their work and time, of course they needed basic business training, therefore they joined the village business incubator's courses. The ladies now are more dynamic and appreciate teamwork which is very important when you want to work with a group in a small business.
Do you feel that you had the necessary advisory and support network when you started your company?
All the Village Business Incubator's studies that include market analysis and feasibility study for the enterprise were available for the ladies to help them in setting the prices for the different products, finding new markets and dealing with competition, in addition to the great help of the French artist Martine Cieutat who provided the ladies with all technical advices needed to improve their work.
What is your message to supporters (financial or otherwise) and what is your message to the users of your product?
This was a great experience for all of us, and we wish to pass it to other people in order to expand this kind of business in Syria.
For the people who might use our product we say that our work is the result of hardworking and great efforts from rural ladies who wish for a better life for their families.
