| Bank BancoSol |
| Client David Santos Condori Sarco |
| Location La Paz, Bolivia |
‘I started to work in dressmaking and sewing in a company with Korean owners. But my salary was very low and not enough to support my family,’ says David, ‘I realised that I needed to become independent and to be my own boss in order to support the needs of my family. But I needed finance to buy a sewing machine and start my own business.’
BancoSol supports its clients by providing business advice to their micro-entrepreneurs.
Micro-enterprise in Bolivia is a creative response to market opportunities: more than half of the economically-active population work independently, taking advantage of the opportunities offered in goods and services markets. Like so many similar entrepreneurs, access to finance from BancoSol was the determining factor in David getting the required tools to set-up his own embroidery business. ‘Our success is clear in the quality of the garments we make,’ says David. The business has grown with the support of loyal clients and now faces the challenges of further growth and expansion, and an increase in their product range.
Credit provided by BancoSol offers opportunities for Bolivians like David and his wife to become micro-entrepreneurs, helping them develop and grow their businesses through loans and building their creditworthiness in the country’s financial system. BancoSol also supports its clients by providing business advice to their micro-entrepreneurs:
‘BancoSol has been like a father to me, they have helped me very much,’ says David. ‘They gave me the opportunity and the loan I needed to invest and grow in my business, just at a time when poor people did not have access to banks. Without this money, I would not have been able to turn my dreams into reality.’
For BancoSol, improving clients’ businesses helps them achieve their mission of improving their clients’ lives. To do this they recognise that they need to respond to their clients’ needs, giving them access to credit, fast application procedures and as little bureaucracy as possible.