Reef-Nimri
Reef Nimri
My Jumpstart Training
Sirajo Abdulkareem
About Sirajo Abdulkareem
Sirajo Abdulkareem, known as Sira in his community, is a self-taught cobbler with nearly twenty years of experience in shoemaking and repairs. He is passionate about hands-on creation and serving his community with dedication and care.
Sirajo dreams of growing his modest operation into a fully equipped shoe and bag production shop that supports his livelihood and uplifts others economically.
His business vision combines creativity, quality craftsmanship, and excellent customer care to meet the footwear and leather goods needs of Mangoroji and surrounding areas. Sirajo’s commitment to his craft and community drives his strong ambition for lasting impact and growth.
Sirajo Abdulkareem
Business Goals
Sirajo Abdulkareem’s business is built on honesty, hard work, and exceptional customer care. He believes in building trust through quality service and treating every visitor with kindness.
His vision is to create a business that does more than sell shoes, as he wants to build a space that educates, employs, and inspires. Over time, Sirajo hopes his cobbling shop will be known for craftsmanship as well as community development and youth empowerment.
His goal is a thriving business in Mangoroji with a second location producing shoes and bags for display, serving working-class customers, students, and local families with durable products.
Sirajo Abdulkareem
Obstacles
Sirajo Abdulkareem has spent 19 years in cobbling, learning through self-practice and community feedback. He enjoys using the industrial sewing machine and bringing clients’ ideas to life.
Despite his skills and experience managing money and records, funding has been his biggest challenge. As a child, he saved from selling peanuts, tomatoes, and mangoes to open his first shop in 2015.
In 2017, slow sales forced him to use marriage savings for business capital. Today, Nigeria’s economic hardship has shifted customer priorities, reducing sales. Limited access to equipment and bulk production also hinder his growth.
Sirajo Abdulkareem
Our Partnership
Sirajo is seeking mentorship, funding, and essential business tools through Leadership Initiatives. He needs a stronger filling machine, shoe lasts in various sizes, and capital to buy leather and materials in bulk for ready-made products.
He also hopes to gain marketing insights and strategies to set his business apart locally. With proper support and guidance, Sirajo believes he can grow his business and become an industry leader.
His dreams include expanding his shop, creating job opportunities for local youth through training and apprenticeships, and providing comfort for his family, starting with a rechargeable fan for hot nights.
My Jumpstart Proposal Presentation
During the Jumpstart Program, I worked directly with some of the world’s leading developmental experts in order to expand my partner’s business and brand identity.
At the conclusion of this internship, our team pitched the final proposal to Bill Stefan, Leadership Initiatives Board Member and Deputy for Enterprise Management for the Department of Defense. This formal pitch allowed our team to practice our skills and utilize our entrepreneurial toolkit, all while showcasing our efforts to transform the business we partnered with.
At the end of the pitch, we were able to receive feedback on our proposal for our business partner. Over the next year, Sirajo will utilize our proposal to propel sustainable growth of their business.
My Jumpstart Proposal
Throughout the program, we worked closely with Sirajo Abdulkareem to gain a clear understanding of their business goals. Though Sirajo 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 infrastructure and marketing materials that would support the growth of their business. We devised a plan that would allow Sirajo to optimize their business through a new budget, financial tracking systems, and logo.
This new budget enables Sirajo to allocate funds toward essential materials and equipment, supporting the optimization of their services. Effective financial tracking will be crucial for managing growing profits and preserving assets, ensuring the business’s long-term growth and stability. 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.
Career Exploration
Our team began the business development process by having a one-on-one Zoom call directly with our business partner, Sirajo Abdulkareem, and our Nigerian project coordinator to ensure productive collaboration.
After discussing important considerations for our marketing materials including local populations, family situations, and prior experience, we began our exploration of the business industry.
We received briefings on marketing and branding tactics from Carla Brooks and Nikki Hendricks.
Outside of the classroom, we received a personalized tour of the Embassy of Austria where we learned about Austrian culture, US/Austria relations, and international business.
To begin our exploration of the medical field, we learned about patient histories and doctor-patient interactions from Dr. Zainab of the Kidney Center of Kano State, Nigeria.
We also got hands-on training for building plaster casts. After receiving this training, we had the opportunity to build model casts and practice assessing damages and breaks.
At the end of the week, we got to put our medical skills to the test through a demo EMT scene where we used triage and emergency response.
To explore the legal field, we received a briefing on legal advocacy from Professor Sarah Stiles, an experienced educator and leader in advocacy and leadership.
I also got to meet esteemed DC District Judge, Adam Hunter. Judge Hunter taught us about questioning, data analysis, and evidence collection.
I also received a personal tour of the University of Maryland Crime Lab where I learned about forensics science, evidence viability, and how to assess crime scenes.
We got the opportunity to learn about different aspects of the intelligence community from an active government investigator, Kesha Middleton. Ms. Middleton taught us about the role of investigators, how careers in government work, and the process for entering the government and intelligence fields.
Outside of the classroom, we took a tour of the International Spy Museum. Throughout this tour, we learned about intelligence and counterintelligence equipment.
We also got the opportunity to discuss topics related to global affairs and government relations through our meetings with the Austrian Embassy officials, government officials from the NSA and DoD, and through collaborations with representatives of universities including Johns Hopkins University, Georgetown University, American University, and more.