Ridhi_Rentala
Ridhi Rentala
My Business Training
Pupla Noel Garba
About Pupla Noel Garba
Pupla Noel Garba is a passionate and determined bag maker from Bauchi State, Nigeria. With over seven years of hands-on experience, she has dedicated herself to crafting stylish, high-quality handbags, footwear, and souvenirs for a growing customer base.
Her journey began with a love for beautiful accessories and grew into a career built on creativity and resilience. The greatest inspiration in Pupla’s life is her aunt, who overcame early loss and hardship with strength and compassion.
Watching her aunt support others and live with purpose motivated Pupla to persevere, pursue her passion, and dream beyond the limits of her circumstances.
Pupla Noel Garba
Business Goals
Pupla began her journey with a three-month apprenticeship in Zaria and continued learning through online tutorials and hands-on work at a bag-making shop. With over seven years of experience, she has built a reputation for trust, quality, and creativity.
One of her proudest moments came when a remote client called her work the best she had ever received. Pupla’s goal is to open a stylish, fully equipped shop at Yelwan Kagadama market.
She envisions a soft, welcoming space with a showroom, production area, and lounge. Her dream is to build a brand that supports both customers and family.
Pupla Noel Garba
Obstacles
One of Pupla’s greatest challenges is a lack of capital to purchase essential equipment such as industrial sewing machines, raw materials, and a generator. This financial barrier has slowed her progress and delayed the launch of her dream shop.
She also faces strong competition in her community, where others offer similar products. Pupla hopes to stand out through flawless craftsmanship and unique collaborations with cobblers to offer matching handbags and footwear.
However, achieving this requires resources she does not yet have. She seeks support through donated tools, mentorship, and marketing assistance to build a strong social media presence and grow.
Pupla Noel Garba
Our Partnership
To bring her vision to life, Pupla seeks support through donations of tools and materials, mentorship in business development, and help with marketing strategies, especially building a strong social media presence.
With this support, she believes she can turn her dream into a thriving and sustainable business that uplifts both herself and her entire community. Pupla aims to establish a nationally recognized brand in bag making.
Beyond financial stability, she hopes to provide a better home for her mother and siblings, pursue higher education, and empower others through training and meaningful employment opportunities.
My Grant Proposal Presentation
As part of the International Leadership and Business Internship, I collaborated with top development experts to help grow and strengthen my business partner’s brand.
At the end of the program, my team presented our final proposal to a panel of judges from the Leadership Initiatives Grant Committee. This formal pitch allowed us to apply our entrepreneurial skills, showcase our strategic plan, and advocate for meaningful change in our partner’s business.
Our team was awarded a grant that will fund the implementation of our business partner’s plan, providing life-changing support that will expand operations, improve financial stability, and create new growth opportunities. Over the next year, this grant will help transform the future of their business and improve the quality of life for both the entrepreneur and their community.
My Grant Proposal
Throughout the program, we worked closely with Pupla Noel Garba to gain a clear understanding of their business goals. Though Pupla has leveraged their skills and years of experience to create their business, they face obstacles hindering the expansion of their work.
Guided by their vision, we crafted a proposal detailing the marketing materials that would support the growth of their business. We devised a plan that would allow Pupla to optimize their business through a new branding strategy.
Investments in a logo and marketing materials, such as signs and flyers, are also vital for establishing a strong brand identity and expanding the customer base. These visual assets help create a consistent and memorable image that builds trust and recognition among potential clients.
Internship Highlights
Our business development journey began with a one-on-one Zoom meeting with our partner, Pupla Noel Garba, and our Nigerian project coordinator. This initial conversation laid the foundation for strong collaboration and helped us better understand Pupla’s background, family, goals for the business, and the specific challenges they were facing.
Hearing directly from Pupla gave us the insight we needed to begin brainstorming practical, personalized solutions. Each morning, our team held focused discussions to refine our ideas, reflect on expert advice from the day before, and adjust our timeline to move our plans forward efficiently.
Throughout the process, on-staff project coordinators and business development experts guided us, helping us ask the right questions and turn our ideas into meaningful, actionable strategies.
I had the unique opportunity to visit the Ethiopian Embassy, where I gained insight into the role of diplomacy in fostering strong relationships between Ethiopia and the United States.
The embassy functions as a center for international collaboration, working with partner countries and global organizations to address pressing issues such as poverty, gender inequality, and climate change. Through this visit, I learned how diplomats engage in meaningful dialogue and policy development to create sustainable, people-focused solutions.
Officials from the Ethiopian Embassy shared how they partner with local communities to identify needs and implement programs that empower individuals and strengthen long-term development. This commitment to community-driven impact inspired my team and me as we worked to develop our own business proposal focused on creating lasting change.
Throughout the internship, our team had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with top experts in business and economic development from Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
One of the highlights was a session with Gerald Gangaram, a decorated Apache helicopter pilot & leadership expert. He gave us a crash course in leadership and decision-making, breaking down the key elements of what makes an effective leader. His insights helped us think bigger and more strategically about how to position our partner’s business for success.
With support from Mr. Gangaram and other global leaders, we sharpened our ideas, refined our strategy, and built a powerful pitch deck to present at the end of the week.
Throughout the internship, our team had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with top experts in business and economic development from Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. State Department, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
One of the highlights was a session with Carla Brooks, Business and Development Officer at the Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs. She gave us a crash course in marketing and advertising, breaking down the key elements of what makes a campaign actually work. Her insights helped us think bigger and more strategically about how to position our partner’s business for success.
With support from Ms. Brooks and other global leaders, we sharpened our ideas, refined our strategy, and built a powerful pitch deck to present at the end of the week. Their guidance helped us take our business proposal to the next level creating a plan designed not only to launch a venture, but to transform our business partner’s future.