Rosa angelica

Loan description:

Rosa Costa is 64 years old and married with two adult daughters. She used to live in the northern city of Lago Agrio where she sold gas tanks which are commonly used for cooking in Ecuador. However, it was not a particularly profitable business and the town had quite a high crime rate. She decided to move to the town of Catamayo in the far south of Ecuador about fourteen years ago. She initially sold 'naranjilla' which is a common type of fruit in Ecuador and Colombia often used to make fruit juices. The business started off well but then fell away mainly because there were so many sellers in the market that the profit margins became less and less. Rosa decided therefore to try something different and opened up a small general shop from home. This has actually worked out quite well because she could combine earning an income with being at home and looking after her children as they were attending college. Her husband works in agriculture. She wants to expand the range of products that her shop stocks and asked for a loan in order to buy a greater range of items in bulk. She intends to repay the loan over 12 months.