Binti Africa, a textile manufacturing business located in Dar es Salam, is specialised in corporate uniforms, African print attire, handbags, and other accessories. The business was incorporated in 2011 by fashionista entrepreneur, Johari Sadiq, and employs 15 people.

Johari approached GroFin in 2016 for working capital needs and to set a new factory with modern machinery.

“My dream is to become the leading supplier of uniforms to the private and government agencies. Also, to export the African attires to foreign markets and probably having my boutique stores in some of the fashion cities such as Johannesburg,” – Johari Sadiq, Owner of Binti Africa

GroFin’s business support to Binti Africa has been to ensure the business has a proper financial management system in place: Binti’s financial records, cash flow management and internal control have all improved by adopting the right accounting software. GroFin also assisted Binti to put in place a project management team for the construction of their workshop. The workshop is large enough now to accommodate the entire production process in an upmarket location. Besides, GroFin has ensured that Johari put in place a succession plan.

Finally, one of GroFin’s major interventions has been to assist Johari in getting a reliable supplier for a state-of-the-art machine and reliable fabric suppliers at a better price from India and Bangladesh. The new procured machine allows for quick finishing and better quality of uniforms and Binti can display a wider variety of collections. Johari has now started online sales for her African attires and is exploring new market segments (school uniforms) as per advice from her GroFin Tanzania Investment Manager to diversify the market and reduce concentration risks on the corporate uniform line.

All in all, Binti’s liquidity and cash flow have drastically improved, and the income base has widened because Johari is no longer dependant solely on tenders for corporate wear. She has machines that have fewer breakdowns and produce higher quality outputs, with fewer rejects, and more options.

Nevertheless, when COVID-19 struck, Binti Africa was severely affected just like any other small business in Tanzania. The impact of the pandemic on the business has caused severe liquidity problem and delay in the delivery of raw materials. Soon enough, Binti Africa could not meet its obligations towards its clients, causing the business to close the production department and provide compulsory leave to its employees.

To curb the impact of COVID-19 on the business, Binti started shifts to observe social distancing. Johari had to keep regular contact with her corporate clients as well as suppliers and add up freight cost to speed up the delivery of raw materials.