Khin Than Su, tailor, Mandalay, Myanmar
Khin Than Su, age twenty-seven, runs a home-based tailor- ing business. She is single and lives with her parents and six siblings. Khin Than Su spends long hours pumping a Burmese foot pedal sewing machine, stitching textiles and lungi (sarong) clothing in the light from her window. When finished, she and her sister will travel to the city of Yangon to sell them.
She was able to buy material through a microloan from BRAC, a...
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Khin Than Su, tailor, Mandalay, Myanmar
Khin Than Su, age twenty-seven, runs a home-based tailor- ing business. She is single and lives with her parents and six siblings. Khin Than Su spends long hours pumping a Burmese foot pedal sewing machine, stitching textiles and lungi (sarong) clothing in the light from her window. When finished, she and her sister will travel to the city of Yangon to sell them.
She was able to buy material through a microloan from BRAC, a nonprofit that also provides business mentoring. Each week she meets with a local staff member who helps review her accounting books and learn about profit margins and saving.
“When my niece helps, the two of us can sew about 400 garments a day,” says Khin. We go door to door selling them in the area for six dollars each. I fulfill factory orders, but then I make only one dollar a lungi. I also sell hair clips, slippers, and small items to help supplement my income. On a good day I can bring in about eight dollars. I am saving to buy an electric sewing machine.”
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