“My business has allowed me to help my children. I must do what I can.”

The winters are cold for Suren Avaguyan as he sits each day in a small wooden shed that houses his shoe-repair business in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia. Suren repairs 10 to 20 shoes a day. A small space heater barely keeps the shop warm enough for him to do his work.

Suren Avaguyan owns his own shoe-repair business. (photo: Opportunity International) This photo is 300 x 200 pixels, 300 dpi, jpg format, 2540 kb. You can right-click to save the file on your computer.

Change-of-season is the busiest time for Suren, but Russian weather requires sturdy shoes year-round. Most people are too poor to buy new shoes when their old shoes can be repaired.

Without loans from Global Impact member charity Opportunity International, Suren would have one location and no employees. But he has had eight loans and now has two additional shops in the city, tripling his business. Suren is able to support his wife and two children, and his two employees are supporting their families as well.

From their small apartment in Nizhny Novgorod. Suren and his wife dream of sending their daughter and son, 14 and 16 respectively, to the university some day. “The first plan is education,” he says.

 Return to Campaign Stories