Paper clothing of various shapes, sizes, and designs lined the walls of this small but adequate tailoring classroom. Ten sewing machines older than the hills steadily produced neat little stitches. Ten ladies at various stages of learning sat diligently working at their workstations; some cutting fabric, some sewing papers, some drawing.
Maga Tailoring School was opened about a dozen years ago and was said to flourish under its original owner. As is not uncommon, the school struggles a bit more now that the woman with a passion for this business has passed away. While others may indeed love their work in developing this business, there’s nothing like the dedication of the founder to thrive any organization.
Initially the students were a bit resistant to the idea that they were going to learn anything about business, after all…they’d paid to learn about tailoring. We began by talking about developing a business concept that does two things: meets a customer need (or two), and somehow distinguishes their product and service from all the other tailors. Keep in mind that all these ladies can see in front of them is learning a skill to earn money for their family. Thinking beyond this basic need is quite foreign. We talked about what might have happened if God would have simply plunked a few random things he created down somewhere in the universe, what if he hadn’t had a bigger plan in mind. The ladies started to see the purpose of planning a bit more clearly.
By the time the teaching was finished, the ladies and the director were full of questions, ideas, and suggestions. I challenged them to continue thinking about their business concept all the while they learn tailoring and promised to return if they wanted to know more. I simply love watching the doors open and the blinders come off. Thank you, Jesus.