The story of Zymyrat Ysmailova from Kara-Kulja
Since old times toshoks had always been important in the life of nomad Kyrgyz people as they slept on them, ate and met guests. They were and remain an obligatory item in the house of the Kygyz people, as well as an element of the bride's trousseau, they call it "Kyzga Sep". Sewing toshoks and pillows requires a lot of time, effort and patience due to a very small manual work.
A resident of Kenesh village, Kara-Kuldzha district, turned her hobby - sewing of national products into a successful business - "Kyzga Sep". Zymyrat was born in 1987 in Kenesh village, Kara-Kuldzha district. In 2006 she graduated from high school in Kenesh village and entered the Osh State University to the Faculty Journalism. Having successfully graduated from the university in 2011, she came to Bishkek to look for a job, but she did not find a job in her specialty. In the same year, Zymyrat opened her first small sewing workshop, where she had worked for five years, and then, due to insufficient working capital and little demand for her products, she was forced to close the workshop and leave to work in Russia. Four years of work in Moscow had passed and Zymyrat, having saved up money, decided to return home and open a sewing workshop again, but in Osh city. Since 2021, she has been selling her products, which are successful and of a high quality and at affordable price.
In recent years, such products have been started to be successful, and Zymyrat's business has developed well. But due to the lack of money, and only as they came in, she often had to go to the market in Karasuu to purchase the necessary materials for the manufacture of orders. She spent a lot of time, resources and effort on this.
When Zymyrat first heard about a special offer “Mykty Aiym” from KICB Bank under the EBRD's Women in Business in Central Asia program, she decided to take the opportunity and take a loan with aim to let her business grow. After receiving the loan, she increased her business's revenues by purchasing raw materials in large bulks and taking on more orders from existing and new customers. Zymyrat also tries to save her and her clients' time with help of ELSOM electronic wallet. Customers make payments for her products by means of the wallet, and Zymyrat can track payments in real time mode.
In future the business woman dreams to develop her business, introduce new ideas, increase production volumes and reach a new level of growth. In order to achieve this, Zymyrat plans in future to study at seminars offered under the EBRD program "Women in Business in Central Asia". She is also actively interested in consulting services from professional and experienced trainers. She will apply all the obtained knowledge to the implementation of her goals, which, she hopes, will lead to the prosperity of her business.
