April 2015—Zivax Maxi, a family owned children’s wear manufacturer, is one of the many small enterprises in Moldova that have struggled to turn a profit. The company, founded in 2003, faced challenges in product quality, customer awareness and distribution.

But Zivax Maxi was able to grow its business and expand retail operations and distribution networks after receiving business development support from USAID in July 2014. The assistance, which was provided through the Competitiveness Enhancement and Enterprise Development II program, helped the company to upgrade product design and successfully rebrand a children’s product line, Maxikids.
 
U.S. assistance did not stop there. To address Zivax Maxi’s need for growth capital, the company again turned to USAID, through the Development Credit Authority (DCA) program. DCA, which provides access to credit for small and medium enterprises through loan guarantees to financial institutions, helped Zivax Maxi obtain a credit line of $42,000. The DCA guarantee was instrumental in accessing financing, since the company did not initially qualify for a loan.

“Access to the USAID-facilitated loan has allowed me to open two shops and buy raw materials for producing a wider range and bigger volume of kids’ wear, which are now selling very well,” said Zinaida Vintea, owner of Zivax Maxi.

The visibility and customer perception levels of the Maxikids brand grew further when the company joined the USAID-supported national Din Inima campaign, an initiative to promote the visibility and competitiveness of local apparel industry producers. The company registered immediate success in the first nine months of 2014, more than tripling sales compared to the previous year. With consistent sales growth, Vintea is now more optimistic than ever about the future of his company.

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