Habba-Honestly handmade
As an ardent handicraft lover, I keep searching for handmade products. One such search, lead me to an e-commerce site Habba.org. At first, the range of products attracted me. I thought it is a regular eCommerce site. This opinion of mine completely changed, when I clicked on one of the products.
I was surprised to see details like how much the artisan earns and the number of days of employment the product generated for the artisan in the price breakup! Habba.org, I learnt, is a non-profit eCommerce initiative instituted for the benefit of India’s rural and tribal artisans.
Details of how much artisan earns from the product
The extensive price break-up also includes details like the raw materials cost, packaging cost, income for the “impact partner” or the NGO that manages the artisan, and income for the eCommerce platform to cover its operational cost. This was the first time I saw such a deep level of honesty and transparency by any retailer – online or offline!
Minute details of the price
Being in the handicrafts industry myself and as a craft blogger, my experience says, most people like handicrafts, but they don’t want to pay for that :). The artisan’s time, skill and labour while creating a handicraft product is always undermined. One visit to Habba.org will show you that the artisan is at the heart of their enterprise. You will see more artisan pictures than models!
It takes hours and days to create
Artisan working with intricate embroidery
Today, our handicraft market is flooded with cheap Chinese look-alike items. For most of the buyers, it is becoming difficult to differentiate genuine handmade items and replicas. Habba is reaching many artisans and handloom weavers all over India, to help their genuine handmade products reach the market. As I know, many of the traditional artisans, though working very hard, are not able earn enough to make ends meet. The handicraft industry is dominated by mediators who mostly exploit the rural artisans. Habba.org is changing that by taking the mediator out of the distribution chain! They work directly with non-profit artisan cooperatives that are focused on rural artisan and craft development, thereby increasing the artisan income and reducing the cost for the end buyer.
Habba.org is not just an e-commerce site. It is a pro-artisan retail movement with the sole purpose of empowering and uplifting India’s rural and tribal artisans. And every handicraft and handloom lover, like you and me, can become a part of this movement by simply shopping on Habba.org, helping them create a better income and a few more days of employment to our much talented, underpaid artisan community. So, in a way, we help create a sustainable social impact for a cause close to our heart!
If you are a lover of genuinely handmade, like me, I feel you should look no further than habba.org! They even deliver to your doorstep across India.
Love,laugh and live the life to the fullest,
-Ranjana
