Abdiqadir Jama knows something about taking risks.
He was forced out of Somalia at age 4, fleeing the war-torn country with his parents and many siblings. They lived in refugee camps in Kenya for the rest of his childhood. Jama got to know Nairobi, Kenya, but thieves and havoc lurked in other African cities he ventured into.
So the thought of starting over — this time in a continent halfway around the globe — didn't much bother him. He spent 18 months filing papers and awaiting approvals for refugee status. When Jama's plane landed in Los Angeles three years ago, he felt pure joy. "I was so happy to be free," he says.
So, after all that, opening his own store in January, in the teeth of the great global recession, was no big deal.
Jama already spoke three languages when he came to the United States. Now he's learning the language of good, old-fashioned American entrepreneurism.
"With business, sometimes it's bad, and sometimes it can be good," he says.
Business has been steady enough at Doof, his African food and clothing store in downtown Greeley, that Jama continues to add products to the shelves.
The store is located in a downstairs room of the Trinity Building. Conveniently, a Somali resource center, called Somaid, is located across the hall.
Jama, 21, named the shop after his grandfather, who went by the nickname "Doof" (pronounced DOHf).
"The meaning is like the person who goes around the world," says Jama, whose parents raised 16 children, many of whom are now in the United States. "He traveled a lot. In Africa, the people in that time were like nomadic people. When they traveled, they walked long distances — state to state."
Jama saved enough money to rent the space and buy the inventory, plus the city's business licensing fees, by working for two years at a Tyson meatpacking plant in Emporia, Kan. By the time he left, he was earning close to $14 an hour as a trainer.
The Doof shop may be small, but it's jammed full with an assortment of goods that Greeley's growing African community is eager to buy. In one corner, a black dress hangs above a rack of women's shoes, which are next to bottles of sesame oil, and African seeds and spices.
A noon-hour visit to Doof on a recent weekday illustrates the myriad avenues of opportunity Somali refugees are finding in Greeley. Besides his shop, Jama is taking classes at Aims Community College. He'd like to become a pharmacist. His sisters, with whom he shares a Greeley apartment, work at the JBS USA plant.
So does Abdijrahman Farah, 24, who stops in to transfer money to relatives in Somalia. Farah has been working at JBS for a year.
Cabdirisaq Ahmed Dahir, 21, strolls in wearing a tie and business shirt. He works at the nearby Wells Fargo branch as a personal banker. Like Jama and Farah, he's originally Mogadishu.
Dahir grabs a Styrofoam cup and makes himself a cup of tea. He frequently drops in Doof when on break from work.
"This is an awesome place. I give it five stars for service," Dahir says. "This guy (Jama) has very nice prices on a lot of the stuff, and he's very devoted to the community. He gives back."
Besides all his other responsibilities — not to mention the fact he's looking for another job that offers health insurance — Jama volunteers at Somaid. He gives English lessons to Somalis and helps them navigate the application process for green cards and passports.
While the Greeley-area Somali community, which numbers close to 1,000 with most working at JBS, is busy integrating into American life, the people also keep close connections to Africa. Jama's store features a popular computerized money transfer service, as well as international phone cards.
Jama says he buys most of his goods from suppliers in the United Arab Emirates. Popular items are the specialty teas, spices and foods from Africa. Many customers like the "black seed" which comes in a small blue-labeled bottle.
"It's like medicine," Jama says. "If you have (a scrape) you rub it in and you feel better."
Also popular are cologne and perfume that come from Africa. One popular brand of perfume is bottled in a small, Aladdin-looking bottle and sells for $20. When enough customers request a product that he doesn't stock, Jama begins ordering the item.
All the while, Jama, who refuses to work in another meatpacking plant, keeps traveling up the businessman's learning curve. He keeps smiling and chatting with customers.
One lesson he's already learned: Keep the shop open from morning to evening.
"Every day this is open," he says of Doof.
Source: The Associated Press
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