Mother of 7 Uses Last R78, Turns it Into Million-Rand Business
- With just $5 (R73.87 as per current rate), a woman in the United States built a business empire that is the envy of many people in the same line of business
- The woman identified as Mignon Francois got a client who ordered for 600 cupcakes, but because she only had $5, they agreed that she would supply 60 for $1 each
- She then used $5 to make $60 (R886); that was when her business began, and today, the woman controls an empire
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A woman identified as Mignon Francois has further proven that starting from the bottom takes people to the top.
Francois and her family struggled through life when she moved to Nashville, Tennessee, with her then-husband, Entrepreneur reports.
According to the woman, her life changed for good when a neighbour who knew she had baking skills ordered for some cupcakes.
Source: UGC
The neighbour had ordered for 600 cupcakes at $1 (N380.53 as per current rate) each, but since Francois didn't have the money to purchase ingredients for all 600, they agreed that she would bake 60 first.
In her words:
"When I closed the door, I had a real come-to-Jesus moment with God and said like, 'Seriously? You offer me this opportunity when I don't have any money? I literally have $5 to feed us.'"
She finally turned that $5 (R73) to $60 (R886 as per current rate) after delivering the 60 cupcakes that was agreed upon. This happened in 2007, and in late 2008, the mum of seven officially founded her company.
Her company, which is called The Cupcake Collection, a bakery for cupcakes, birthday cakes, and wedding cakes, boasts of nearly $1 million (R14.77 million) in sales each year.
But the woman's success didn't come on a platter of gold. It took years of smart money habits to take her business to where it is today.
The woman who started baking in her kitchen now runs a nationwide cupcake empire.
Briefly.co.za previously reported on a similar story. Ncumisa Miesah Mkabile shared her inspiring story of making it through the pandemic. Ncumisa had to close down her takeaway business, which was her only source of income, but this did not stop her from working hard.
The 27-year-old started selling chicken and going door to door to do her deliveries. After realising there was a demand for supplies from others who wanted to start their own business, Ncumisa jumped at the gap in the market.
In late May 2020, Ncumisa got her hands on some land where she planted 20 000 spinach seeds. She got more land a few months later where she planted 20 000 green pepper seeds and now supplies huge supermarkets.
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Source: Briefly News
Maryn Blignaut (Human-Interest HOD) Maryn Blignaut is the Human Interest manager and feature writer. She holds a BA degree in Communication Science, which she obtained from the University of South Africa in 2016. She joined the Briefly - South African News team shortly after graduating and has over six years of experience in the journalism field. Maryn passed the AFP Digital Investigation Techniques course (Google News Initiative), as well as a set of trainings for journalists by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at: maryn.blignaut@briefly.co.za
Kelly Lippke (Senior Editor) Kelly Lippke is a copy editor/proofreader who started her career at the Northern-Natal Courier with a BA in Communication Science/Psychology (Unisa, 2007). Kelly has worked for several Caxton publications, including the Highway Mail and Northglen News. Kelly’s unique editing perspective stems from an additional major in Linguistics. Kelly joined Briefly News in 2018 and she has 14 years of experience. Kelly has also passed a set of trainings by Google News Initiative. You can reach her at kelly.lippke@briefly.co.za.
