iShippo to improve the livelihood of weavers

India CSR News Network

MUMBAI: iShippo.com an online marketplace dedicated to promoting Indian culture & heritage though handcrafted products has joined hands with New Delhi-based Digital Empowerment Foundation (DEF). This is an effort to boost sales of Chanderiyann handloom products and improve the livelihood of weavers/artisans of India.

In India, there are more than 2000 traditional skill-based clusters covering various skills from textile designing, handicrafts, and glass, leather and brass goods to wooden industries. Out of 2000, there are 470 handloom clusters in India. According to the National Handloom Census 2012-2013, the sector is providing employment to about 65 lakh people in the country — the second largest employment sector after agriculture.

However, most of those working in the sector are suffering from exploitation, poor living conditions, extremely low wages and inaccessibility to direct market. The handloom-based clusters are unable to sustain their livelihoods, enterprise due to its very nature of being unorganized and dispersed structure, lack of education, lack of inadequate working capital, inadequate infrastructure, poor institutional framework and absolute disassociation from modern technologies including Information & Communication Technologies.

Keeping this in mind, iShippo.com offers a marketplace to buy/sell creative handcrafted products that supports local makers, artist, craftsmen, self-help groups, NGO and indie businesses. Its mission is to support local artisans by connecting them with designers & buyers from across the globe. DEF is an NGO that is dedicated to finding ICT solutions to digitally empower the marginalized and underserved rural communities of India. The empowerment & development focused agenda integrates the social and economic capital needs of the targeted artisan communities.

On this occasion Karma Bhutia – Founder & CEO of iShippo.com said “This is a great moment in iShippo’s history to be associated with self help groups, NGO who are working with communities on the fringes of our country’s economic prosperity. Now with the DEF partnership we at iShippo.com will work to bring due recognition and economic prosperity to these communities of weavers at Chanderi. Why NOT? Since they are literally fueling our country’s ‪#‎MakeInIndia dream”

Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make In India’ campaign iShippo.com not only promotes handcrafted ‘Make in India’ product but also includes promotion of the culture heritage and the culture keeper of India like Traditional Handloom artists and craftsmen. iShippo.com is committed to supporting artisans/craftsmen, creating a sustainable way of doing business/commerce while using the power of Internet & eCommerce to bring together communities and empower people.

iShippo.com is a marketplace where people around the world connect, both online and offline, to make, sell and buy handcrafted goods. Its mission is to support local artisans by connecting them with designers & buyers from across the globe. Meanwhile, DEF is an NGO that is dedicated to finding ICT solutions to digitally empower the marginalized and underserved rural communities of India.

Together, DEF and iShippo.com aim to allow technological enablement of artisans to bridge the digital divide, bring the global market at the doorstep of weavers, help weavers transform into entrepreneurs from daily wagers, initiate capacity building of the artisan community and ensure self-sustainability of clusters.