Are entrepreneurs born or nurtured? Nadya Felah proves that it is a bit of both. Even when she worked as a janitor at a government school in Amman, she supplemented her meager income by buying used clothes in bulk and selling them to teachers. Realizing that she could make more than her salary, she quit her job at the school and started selling used clothes from her car full time, using loans from Microfund for Women (MfW)to build her business.

Nadya next began to think about what product is a necessity and therefore has a continuous customer base. She decided to start a company to distribute gas cylinders used for cooking and gas heaters. Her husband, Nidhal, was against the idea; he did not believe a woman running a gas distribution business would succeed. Nadya persisted, finishing in a few weeks a licensing process that usually takes six months. With a loan from MfW, she bought two cars and started her business in 2005. Nidhal realized how serious she was and eventually saw how profitable the business was. He now works for Nadya part-time. She also employs her two sons, four drivers and two office employees, and is proud to say that she is supporting seven households including her own.

In the past two years Nadya has acquired several coveted contracts from government agencies. Nadya hopes to buy 700 gas cylinders so she can always be selling gas even while one of her trucks waits to fill the maximum 420 cylinders at the refinery. She believes that once she reaches this goal, her business will be quite successful and she will be able to work less. However, her biggest supporter, her husband Nidhal, is encouraging her to run for office in the union of gas providers. He knows that she has what it takes to succeed in whatever she sets her mind to.

This story is also posted at One Hen: Microfinance for Kids