São Paulo – The Syrian engineer Talal Altinawi, who sought asylum in Brazil in 2013, has managed to match and surpass his goal of raising R$ 60,000 (approximately US$ 15,000 at current exchange rates) through crowdfunding, a system whereby unknown people donate money to projects. Altinawi, who wants to open a restaurant, raised R$ 69,679 (US$ 17,370) from early August until last Monday (21st), when the campaign ended. The project got a total of 831 donations. Out of the amount he raised, 12%, or R$ 8,360, will go to kickante, the website he used in order to collect the cash.
Talal hasn’t been wired the money yet, and told ANBA last Wednesday (23rd) that he is yet to decide on the type of business he will set up. Although he wants to be a restaurateur, he is aware that the sum he raised is not enough. “I intended to open a restaurant, but that requires even more cash. I’ll make up my mind when I get (the cash). That will take a few days. I might open a takeaway food store or maybe a food truck. I want to set up my business at a good spot. I don’t want a poor area. I want a rich place where the company can thrive,” he said.
Altinawi arrived in Brazil in December 2013. He used to live in Syria, but left in January of that year due to the armed conflict between the government and rebels. He moved to Lebanon, but was unable to prosper. When he learned that Brazil had loosened its requirements for granting asylum, he decided to live here, even though he had scarce information about his new home. He relocated to São Paulo with his wife and two kids. This year, the first Brazilian family member was born.
In the city of São Paulo, Altinawi couldn’t find good jobs and was unable to generate a profit with a small store. He decided, then, to cook typical dishes from his country and to sell them on-demand and in parties and bazaars. With the help of friends and members of a non-government organization, Altinawi launched a crowdfunding campaign. Everyone that donated will be rewarded. The higher the donation, the higher the discount in the future venture.
But before all this, however, he needs to execute the project. “I was very surprised and happy with the donations I received. In the first 20 days of the campaign, I received around R$ 35,000 (US$ 8,436) in donations. I asked for help more through my Facebook page. In the last few hours of the campaign, people donated almost R$ 20,000 (US$ 4,820). It was really surprising”, he said. When Altinawi decides what to do, he will use the money to pay the first months of rent or to buy the food truck, equipment and ingredients.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum and Sérgio Kakitani
