“I’ve owned a women’s clothing store for a long time and I was thinking about introducing a new line to grow it and expand the selection of items available”: Ryan ‘s voice is firm and confident when he describes his vision of the future for the business he runs. The colors of the clothes around him, the many jeans folded in full view on the shelves, speak instead of today, of a present of resistance in the city and country where he lives and works: Baniyas , in Syria.
Sales are increasing
Ryan is a middle-aged married father of two. He first heard about RestarT at church.
The methods and purposes of this AMU program coincided exactly with her goal, that of giving a new boost to the clothing store, investing in order to be able to continue living in her city: “I applied for support, and it was approved.
So I was able to bring new items into the store, such as wool and fur jackets, which gave a nice boost to sales and attracted many new customers. My earnings increased significantly.”
Ryan reinvests profits
Following this increase in sales, Ryan also had to reorganize the accounting and administrative part of his business. For this aspect too, he was accompanied by the RestarT team in Baniyas to manage the account book, in which he meticulously reports the incoming and outgoing goods.
At the end of each month, it is instead an opportunity to think more broadly: “I make an inventory of the accounts to protect the capital, so that I can buy new merchandise and know what profits I have obtained after paying all the expenses of the store, such as the employee’s salary and the household expenses.
I put the remainder into a guarantee fund, where I deposit a small portion of my earnings every month. After a few months, when the amount becomes sufficient, I reinvest it to buy new merchandise for the store, so I can periodically restock the store with new and attractive items.”
The joy of reciprocity
Reciprocity is both a value and one of the most important objectives of the RestarT program, and it is also a way to strengthen the relationship with customers.
In his work, Ryan encounters many low-income people who cannot afford to spend a lot on an item they want, so he sells it to them at cost, without making a profit. This way, the customer is satisfied and he still manages to preserve the capital of his business.
Also, sometimes special offers come up on some goods that could guarantee a higher revenue by increasing the prices, but Ryan prefers to sell them to customers with fewer resources at the offer price, without a profit margin . As he himself says: “This initiative makes me happy because it makes me feel close to others and allows me to give a smile with these small gestures”.
The man is very satisfied with his shop in Baniyas and has the constant desire to make it grow, support it and keep its reputation alive, making it solid and long-lasting.
