Coming in just shy of five feet tall, Joyce Kyalisiima is a powerhouse of positive energy — and now due to her dedication to “Saving with a Purpose,” so is her business.
As a Village Enterprise business owner, Joyce runs a small retail kiosk where people make small everyday purchases. Through receiving business training, guidance on saving, and seed capital from Village Enterprise, Joyce worked to grow her kiosk business. Business improved, but Joyce felt that one thing was missing-–music! Joyce imagined that music would draw customers to her kiosk. She imagined that as customers conversed and shopped, her kiosk could be a place of gathering. Armed with a vision, Joyce turned her efforts toward execution.
The solution came in the form of our “Saving with a Purpose” (SWAP) program. SWAP is designed to allow business owners to reap the benefits of saving early in the program. Joyce set a goal of saving for a sound system and a solar panel to power it. Next, she calculated the cost and estimated how much she could save per week. Upon relaying this information to her Business Savings Group (BSG), they calculated how many weeks Joyce would need to save in order to reach her goal. The cost of the sound system and solar panel was over 140,000 shillings ($40 USD). Joyce carefully saved 9,000 shillings per week and faithfully delivered it at her weekly BSG meeting. After just four months, she reached her goal and purchased her music system. Now, you’ll find Joyce’s business bustling! With the volume up, feet tapping, and hands clapping, Joyce is living the transformation that comes with saving with a purpose!
Building on her recent success, Joyce now has a SWAP plan to purchase a plot of land, valued at 1.2M shillings ($350 USD) in approximately one year.
“Thank you for coming to this community! I am very happy and excited about the program! Village Enterprise has done a tremendous job in terms of development for our village. Thank you to the donors – we are now all friends, no matter the distance!” – Joyce Kyalisiima
Joyce Kyalisiima and author, Christine Rose