One of the pandemic’s rare silver linings was that it revealed the potential in a lot of people—people who used their talent to start online businesses, and others who took short online courses to gain skills in various things. This blossomed into various start-ups in bakery, catering, art, fashion and so forth. In 2020, when the first lockdown was imposed in Rwanda, siblings Queen Lycer and Iness Tumukunde, 17 and 16 years old respectively, found themselves with more time on their hands as schools had been closed—with no indication on when they would resume. Because of this, the girls sought ways to stay occupied. They spent most of their free time watching different YouTube videos, trying to discover something that would spark interest to them. Some of their designs They found themselves intrigued by crotchet designs. With YouTube tutorials as their guide, they asked their parents for the materials to practice. The process was both fun and challenging as it needed accuracy. Any slight mistake meant starting afresh. Their first crochet apparels and carpet samples were given out to friends and family for free to get feedback. To their surprise, the reactions were incredible. “Our role model is Mati Denmark Crotchet as they display a variety of unique designs on their website, and this inspires us to be unique. We are looking forward to standing out in Rwanda. For now, our focus is to make connections with people that can help us fulfil our dreams,” Tumukunde says. While watching TV one time, the duo came across designer Chris Gentle, the CEO of ‘Umulinga fashion Ltd’, his story inspired them and they wrote to him via social media requesting to partner with his fashion brand. The stylist didn’t only grant their request, he also helped them buy quality crotchet raw materials and machines. “Chris Gentle offered us a working space in his shop in town without thinking twice, his clients became our clients. So far, we have started earning from our business, and in case of any business advice, he is there for us, and cheers us along. We believe that we shall achieve great things in the future working as a team,” Tumukunde says. The young entrepreneurs say that many young people are talented and have amazing ideas but lack support, which leaves them demotivated, thus giving up on what they love doing. Tumukunde calls upon established people in the art or fashion industry to provide any help necessary, especially to the youth, as they have so much to showcase, but lack the platforms. In this handmade work, the teenagers have achieved experience, connections, and clients. However, they have also encountered some challenges, as they lack enough capital to expand their business and improve their productivity. The entrepreneurs say that they still need to improve their skills, particularly in crocheting carpets, and also learn how to make many more items. However, they haven’t had the chance to embark on this just yet. The girls are working on a few collections that are yet to be launched. They look forward to inspiring and empowering the youth through crotchet training so that they can start businesses of their own and not depend on their parents for everything. According to Tumukunde, crocheting is also therapeutic as it allows the mind to focus on the pattern, with minimal distractions. She adds that the beauty of crocheting is that it can be done anywhere, as long as you have a ball of yarn and a hook, which isn’t the case with other businesses. Crocheting also allows a person to make almost anything their mind can think of, from dolls and doormats to shoes, hats, bags, and so forth. Once you have mastered it, Tumukunde says, you can’t run out of ideas. It also creates a sense of accomplishment when the project is completed.
