Sister, sister: meet Marthe and Adelle and their colorful business

BY MEGHAN MCLAUGHLIN

March 8th marks International Women’s Day: a day to celebrate women’s achievements, raise awareness about the barriers women face, and take action to promote gender equality. 

Every day, BRAC works with inspiring women. We see the barriers that women around the world face—but fortunately, we know that they can be broken.

Today, I want to highlight an incredible story of a team of two sisters who are breaking barriers and transforming their community through tenacity and grit.

Deep in the hills of Kamayoni, Rwanda—where the remote landscape, made even more challenging by heavy rains and floods, overlooks a lush green valley—I recently met Marthe and Adelle. They are sisters: and from the moment I met them, I could tell they had a close relationship and infectious energy.  

Marthe (right), age 58, and Adelle (left), age 42, are a powerful sister team with a thriving family business. But just a year ago, things were different.

“My sister and I worked [as seamstresses] with several other women in one house,” Marthe shared. “But there were a lot of women [working] at this place, so we didn’t bring home much money.” 

They wanted to start their own business. But with a limited income, they needed capital to invest.

When they found BRAC, their dream began to become a reality.

Make dreams a reality. Invest in a woman’s potential.

Marthe and Adelle each took out a $100 loan from BRAC. They started with one machine and a handful of fabrics: the basics to start their business. After paying back her first loan with proceeds from the business, Marthe took out a second loan of $200 to further invest in its growth. 

A year later, their profits have soared by 15 percent. 

Marthe, front, and Adelle, behind, sew on their machines in their workspace. If you look closely, you’ll see a third sewing machine in the background!

The sisters showed me around their workspace. Every corner was draped with brightly colored fabrics and clippings of fashionable Rwandan women wearing patterned dresses. As I scanned the room, I realized they had three sewing machines, not two. I asked who the third machine belonged to.

“The third machine is for students,” Marthe shared, beaming with pride. “We started an internship program to teach girls in the community, ages 15 to 18, [how to be a seamstress]. We want to give other girls the opportunity we didn’t have.”

With their increasing success, Marthe and Adelle realized they could give back to their community as their business grew. Their internship program has so far helped two young women from their town learn the ropes of sewing and running a business. The students even had access to their own machine to practice on!

Facing a youth unemployment rate of 16.6 percent, young people in Rwanda often have limited opportunities to thrive—and young women, in particular, face disproportionate barriers. But through their internship program, Marthe and Adelle are doing their part to change the situation, little by little.

When you invest in women, they invest in women. Give today.

After one year as BRAC microfinance clients, the sisters love the sense of community they have gained. 

Each week, Marthe and Adelle meet with their microfinance group, a group of other women in their community who are taking loans from BRAC. Their village savings and loan association, or VSLA, comes together weekly to save money, hold each other accountable, exchange business tips, and build friendship and community.

Each week, Marthe and her sister attend a meeting with their Village Savings and Loan Association, bringing together women from their community. 

“At some point, we are not feeling lonely. We have other members, other women to talk about things we are interested in and expanding our businesses,” Marthe shared. 

Community is powerful: particularly for women business owners, who face unique barriers. 

And there is no better community than family! When I asked the sisters if they liked working together, they looked at each other and giggled. Marthe said, “It helps us to be together every day. We trust each other and make decisions together.”

As partners in their business, they have set goals together as their business grows. Currently, they are saving for a new, electronic sewing machine that they can use to make special designs. And Adelle has plans to take out another loan to boost the business’ growth in the “good season”—also known as summer, their busiest time of year.

Power potential. Invest in a woman like Marthe or Adelle.

I asked Marthe how the business makes her feel. She shared, “I feel independent. I don’t have to ask my husband for anything. And, it gives me an opportunity to know the customers and the community.” She and Adelle added that both of their husbands are very supportive of their business.

Marthe, left, and Adelle, right, laugh together as they show off their colorful shop.

As their business grows, they are reinvesting their increasing profits into expanding the business—and also, into their families. Marthe and her husband have three adult children, and four grandchildren. Adelle and her husband have one child, a 17-year-old. As their business continues to grow and thrive, their families are in turn thriving, too.

That is the power of investing in women. When we invest in women, the gains go far beyond the individuals themselves. They in turn invest in their families and communities, creating a positive ripple effect for generations to come. Marthe and Adelle are no different.

This International Women’s Day, invest in women. Around the world, women still face barriers to achieving their potential: But you can help break those barriers. 

Help a woman like Marthe or Adelle grow a business, and spark a chain reaction that betters their life, their family, and their community.

Start a ripple effect. Invest in a woman’s potential today.

Meghan McLaughlin is Senior Manager, Digital Marketing at BRAC USA.