Antonio Alberto and his wife Dilian [DEEL-yen] have been model loan recipients of the Society of the Good Shepherd for the past 16 years. Antonio first took out an interest-free loan from the Society in 2010 when he was a single man. He had a tiny roadside souvenir stand along the Pan-American highway, just outside of Siguatepeque. The loan enabled him to expand his inventory. Eight years later, we did a before-and-after newsletter about his business, as it had grown enormously in size. By that time, Antonio had married Dilian, and they had a daughter.
Then 2019 came, and a tornado hit his house and business, destroying the roof of his business, damaging the roof of his house, and decimating much of his inventory of ceramic souvenirs. The Society raised money to replace the roof of Antonio’s business, and local Christians provided the labor for free. Antonio took out a second loan to replace his damaged inventory. Then the Covid pandemic hit, and much of the country was shut down for nearly a year, with only limited travel allowed. With few vehicles passing their souvenir shop, Antonio and Dilian lived thriftily, prayed mightily, and God enabled them to survive these two back-to-back crises.
Just when everything was going well again, more and more souvenir stands opened close by Antonio’s business. Some of these new business owners were able to purchase their inventory in large bulk quantities. They were thereby able to undersell Antonio. To match their prices would have left Antonio with little or no profit. So he and Dilian applied for a new interest-free loan from the Society to upgrade their business. They then formulated a twofold strategy for their business to survive.
First, they used part of the loan money to expand their inventory of plants and honey. They had already begun to sell plants before 2019, but their whole plant selection was wiped out by the tornado. But with the help of this new loan, they are now able to offer a wide selection of plants. None of the other nearby souvenir stands offer plants, so this has enabled Antonio to successfully compete with them.
Antonio has quite the green thumb and has been able to invest time and part of the loan money to “grow” (literally and figuratively) this aspect of their business. The small stream behind their house provides a unique way to water their plants. Their oldest daughter, Scarlet, is learning how to raise and propagate the succulent plants. She is learning quickly and is already a great asset to the family business.
The second part of their strategy was suggested by Dilian. A mile from their present location, the government built a row of small shop buildings, which individuals can rent specifically to sell souvenirs. Prices are regulated in this “strip mall,” so everyone charges the same price for the same items. Therefore, Antonio opened a second shop there, to which he moved the inventory that he could no longer sell at his original location because of price competition. Since prices in these stores are all the same, Antonio competes effectively by offering many items that are not found in the other stores.
Today Antonio and Dilian sell a huge variety of wood, ceramic, woven, and hand-crafted souvenirs in their second store. Their niece runs the second store, which allows Dilian to manage the house and stay home with their two sweet girls while doing business administration and keeping an eye on the shop when needed.
Antonio and Dilian told us that it would have been almost impossible with a high interest bank loan to get their plant business up and running again—let alone open up a second location. They know that this is an opportunity from the Lord that they don’t want to waste.
Because they have been so faithful in their past loans and so supportive of the local Society meetings, we are confident the Lord will bless their new endeavors. Antonio and Dilian request your continued prayers for their family, church, and business. And they thank all of you who have made their new loan possible.
Julie Nyhoff de Valladares
The Society of the Good Shepherd, P. O. Box 122, Amberson, PA 17210 • (717) 349-7033
Click on the following link if you would care to make a donation to the work in Honduras: Honduras Donations