Munir is one of the key figures in the AMU-EDC “RestarT: Start Over to Stay” project, which has discovered the power of reciprocity: today, his shop in Aleppo brings a scent of hope back to the community
source: AMU
The familiar, comforting aroma of coffee wafts out the moment Munir opens the door to his shop in Aleppo. And when he takes a handful of roasted beans and pours them with the utmost care into a grinder, he is simply performing a ritual well-known to those in this trade—one that Munir himself executes to perfection. The crisp sound of the beans sliding into the grinder is a kind of promise for those living in Aleppo today. In the background, behind him, neatly arranged shelves display packages of coffee and other products. Anyone looking to buy a good blend can come here—to Aleppo—and will find behind the counter a kind man who has made a dream come true within these small walls.
A coffee grinder
“I used to work at a travel agency, and I owned this space, but unfortunately I didn’t have the money to buy the raw materials and tools needed to open this shop, as I’d long desired,” Munir recalls now, as he picks up a bean that slipped from his hand and fell to the floor. He wears a blue padded jacket, because it’s cold in here and in Syria, in Aleppo today, it’s hard to get any heating.
Clearly, his dream had a solid foundation for success, given that the RestarT team in Aleppo deemed him worthy of support. The first item to arrive at the shop—provided by the program—was the coffee grinder. Then, everything else: “Once I received the equipment, the business took off!”.
Munir drew on his business experience gained after working for years at a travel agency. And he left nothing to chance: “I started observing my customers’ needs and, based on that, created new coffee blends they would enjoy. I also introduced new products that I didn’t have at first.” When the first profits came in, he bought a refrigerator, always useful in a shop.
Hanging On in Aleppo Today
The past period has been a rollercoaster for the shop and for Syria, following the offensive that led to the fall of Aleppo in November 2024 and the fighting that took place in the city. Munir had to close for a while, and his income dried up: “Fortunately, I had a small savings fund that served as a safety net during the downtime, allowing me to buy food and pay the installment on the loan I received from RestarT.”
Repaying the Microcredit Through Reciprocity
Those who receive a microcredit from RestarT commit to repaying the support received in two complementary ways: fifty percent in cash and the other fifty percent in solidarity. Or rather, in reciprocity.
Munir himself tells us how he did his part for the Aleppo community today:
“I contacted some organizations that care for the elderly and their needs, and I donated coffee to them so they could cheer up their guests."
Support RESTART
Supporting RESTART means believing in people. It means giving them the tools to get back on their feet, to stay, to build. It means transforming charity into justice, aid into dignity. Donate now, here. The RestarT project is carried out by AMU with the contribution of EoC – Economy of Communion.