How Stable Electricity Transformed Funmilayo’s Tailoring Business

For years, Funmilayo ran her stone-laying business in silence, not the kind of quiet that brings peace, but one marked by stalled engines, unpowered machines, and long, costly trips just to get work done.

She’s lived in her rural town for over a decade. In that time, she’s witnessed firsthand the hurdles that many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in underserved communities must constantly navigate, chief among them being a lack of reliable electricity.

“Before the light came, if we wanted to use our stoning engine, we had to take it all the way to Shaki,” she recalls. Shaki, a much larger town several kilometres away, was the nearest place where she could find consistent electricity. This meant spending extra money on transportation, losing hours of valuable time, and missing out on income.

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Like many rural entrepreneurs across Nigeria, Funmilayo’s business had potential, but no power.

“We were in darkness,” she says, describing not just the absence of light, but the stalling of opportunities.

Everything began to change the day Havenhill Synergy installed a solar mini-grid in her community.

“With electricity here now, it even feels like we are in the King City,” she beams. What once took hours of travel and planning can now be done right in her backyard. “We have our own engines now, and we can lay stones without any problem.”

Stable electricity hasn’t only improved her work, but it’s also multiplied her earnings. With more profit coming in, Funmilayo has been able to reinvest in her family and community. She also supports her aging parents financially, something she couldn’t do consistently before.

“With the profit from this business, I’ve been able to send my children to school and assist my parents,” she says with pride.

Now, Funmilayo has her eyes set on expanding her operations. Her next goal is to acquire another stoning machine, something she once considered out of reach. The newfound stability in power supply has given her the confidence to dream bigger and build more.

“This electricity is very good for us,” she says simply, but with meaning that runs deep.

Solar is Lighting the Way for Rural SMEs

Funmilayo’s story mirrors that of many rural business owners across Nigeria, where over 85 million people still lack access to grid electricity. For SMEs, this energy gap is a barrier to growth, income, and long-term stability.

Solar mini-grids like the one in Funmilayo’s town are closing that gap, providing clean, consistent power that unlocks productivity, lowers operating costs, and helps rural entrepreneurs compete in ways they couldn’t before. When businesses thrive, so do families, and so do communities.

At Havenhill Synergy, we’re committed to lighting up more towns, powering more dreams, and ensuring that entrepreneurs like Funmilayo no longer have to choose between potential and power, they can have both.

Watch Funmilayo share her story here:

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