Sushila’s Fishing Equipment Store

Sushila Damai is one of the members benefiting from our microfinance program in Nepal, My Business My Freedom (MBMF). Her business journey hopes to encourage and motivate others to press on despite difficult times.

Sushila working in their store

Before being part of the program, Sushila’s family moved from Syangja to Pokhara in search of better opportunities. She initially started by selling chickens and then switched to tailoring, but struggled to succeed. During the COVID-19 pandemic, her husband drove a taxi to help make ends meet, but they faced financial losses due to various expenses such as rent, education costs for their two sons, and household expenses. They had trouble maintaining a stable income as hard as they tried.

That did not stop them from looking at more sources of income for their family. They soon discovered a good market for fishing equipment, so Sushila opened a shop for fishing nets and equipment. Both she and her husband work at the shop, with Sushila making the nets while her husband handles logistics and sales. However, the increased equipment prices and other necessary goods made it difficult for her to restock her shop, and she lacked the funds to do so.

A month ago, Sushila joined the Krishnatol women’s group and borrowed NPR 35,000 (USD 263), which she used to restock her shop. Now, she has all the stock she needs to run her store, and her business is going smoothly. She is grateful for the support she received from the MBMF program and hopes to make around NPR 100,000 (USD 750) in the coming month.

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