Illustration: AI
Anar Zhunisova from Kulsary earned her first 25 thousand tenge from an order for five boxes of chocolate-covered strawberries. It started with a gift: she brought a box she had prepared herself for her hostess’s birthday. Anar had tried several ventures while on maternity leave, but none had grown into a serious business (digitalbusiness.kz).
What happened
During the holy month of Ramadan, Anar visited someone’s home for iftar. It was also her hostess’s birthday. Anar decided to give her a box of chocolate-covered strawberries and prepared the gift herself.
Her hostess liked the box of strawberries. She then ordered five more boxes from Anar for her own iftar.
Anar received 25 thousand tenge for the order. The gift she brought for the birthday had led to a sale of boxes of chocolate-covered strawberries.
What Anar Zhunisova did before the order
Anar was born in the small town of Kulsary in Atyrau Region. She graduated from university with a degree in Information Systems and then began working in banking. In 2019, Anar went on maternity leave.
While on maternity leave, she tried baking cakes to order. She also sewed clothes and sold toys. None of these ventures grew into a serious business.
What this means
In the strawberry story, the customer was the hostess who received Anar’s gift. She liked the box Anar had prepared by hand and wanted to order several more just like it for her own iftar.
The 25 thousand tenge was for an order of five boxes. It was income from a specific order that followed the birthday gift.
Before the strawberry story, Anar had already tried various ventures, from baking cakes to selling toys. The order for the boxes came while she was on maternity leave, which she began after working in banking.