Thirty-year-old Pinky is a mother of four kids and a doted daughter-in-law. And she is also an entrepreneur who runs her own garment store as well as stitching shop and contributes to her family income.

Pinky says, “I always wanted to do something of my own and had been wanting to start a readymade garment store for the longest time. But I thought I would need to save a big amount, like Rs 40- 50,000 to start a business. Every time I would start saving towards a bigger amount, something would come up and I would spend half the money, never making it to saving the entire big amount.

But when I attended the start-up training in September 2018, under the Disha project implemented by Humana People to People India (HPPI), I learnt that it is, in fact, advisable to start with a smaller investment so that we can recover it and if unfortunately, it does not work out, we would not be in a major loss. After that, something in me changed. I was motivated and eager than ever before to open my own shop.”

Pinky invested Rs 10,000 from her own savings and stocked her shop with suits and sarees of the latest fashion. Once they sold off well, she invested another Rs 20,000 and refilled her stock.

Along with the start-up entrepreneurial training, HPPI also links beneficiaries to microfinance loans, skills training and banks. So when Pinky enquired about a loan, she was supported by HPPI’s microfinance initiative with a loan of Rs 30,000.

“I am very happy with my sales. Women usually come in groups and it helps me sell more. I want to stock my shop with cosmetics and clothes for children because that is what my customer’s demand,” says Pinky who often lets her customers buy on credit because she understands that one may not always have the money. But being an entrepreneur, she also maintains a ledger and keeps a note of her credits and sales.

Pinky believes people take time to get adjusted to a new wave of change but they will come to understand that when a woman earns an income, it helps her secure a better future for her children and family.