A new year and a new beginning. New Year wishes to all readers. We, at Sasha began the year on a positive note, reaching out to many. The Shop team stepped out to match their step with all the major events in the city. Our Kantha women threaded their way from their villages to exhibition in Bolzano, Italy. We held in-house workshops with Producer Groups on the critical topics covering Minimum wages and Pricing. We traced our path back to Varanasi, to refresh and renew our relationships with former, present and new producers. This month was also about networking and meeting like-minded people, inspiring some with our stories and getting inspired by some others.
Sasha and SSA organized three workshops on engaging producers on statutory compliances regarding wages, on revision artisan’s wage and approaching costing with a fresh outlook. While pilots were conducted with selected producer groups and results shared, challenges were discussed and way forward was agreed upon. All craft, textile and garments groups participated in these workshops and agreed to revise their costing of current orders as per new cost sheet templates. The workshops were facilitated by Sambuddha Ghosh, Roshni Mukherjee and Sib Daspal.
In an effort to help reduce the risk associated with spices, RASA and Ushagram Spice unit have adopted Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP) approach that assesses each step in a food manufacturing process for potential hazards and identifies controls to prevent their occurrence. Each year RASA undergoes external audit under the HACCP approach. This January, the RASA and Ushagram spice unit successfully completed their audit.
SSA participated in a workshop organized by Harvard University South Asia Institute (SAI), USA at Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), Ahmedabad. This is a part of this collaborative initiative between the Harvard University South Asia Institute (SAI), USA and the Tata Trusts, India. SSA was selected for the Capacity Building workshop for the organizations working in the Handicrafts and Handlooms sectors. This workshop helped SSA to reach out to the sector, interact with practitioners and renew links.
Our Kantha women brigade traveled to Bolzano Italy on behest of the support provided by Provance region. Our good friend Simona Stoppa has been working for almost a year with in-house designers Swagata and Chitra to put together a visually stunning and resplendent range of Kantha that speaks volume of the incredibly skilled women in our producer groups. The Kantha women, Swagata and Roshni have their hands full with interacting with visitors, students, eager learners and the press.
Sasha was invited to participate in ITC Ladies group meet. Sasha CEO Roopa Mehta was invited to speak on Sasha and its engagement with craft, producers and specially promoting women artisans. Sasha products were showcased and relationships forged.
Roopa Mehta and Sujata Goswami visited Varanasi this month. The visit was aimed at strengthening ties with the Varanasi producers specializing in fashion jewellery, wooden toys, wall hangings, floor coverings, brocade stoles and the eclectic Varanasi sarees. New product ranges and producers were explored along with placing sample orders. The duo not only interacted with producers but also soaked in the sights and sounds of Varanasi in winter and brought back many memories for the team in office.
Sujata visited Katlamara in West Tripura to renew our ties with a community driven Bamboo and allied craft project, a very dear project of late M.P.Ranjan from NID. As a result, SSA shall facilitate capacity building and scaling up while Sasha will provide the vital marketing support to these extremely talented craftpreneuers.
The Sasha shop showcased a range of tastefully designed and utility Terracotta with its monthly event- ‘Terra Cotta’. The Shop displayed a collection of earthen ware featuring Bowls, tea pot sets, tea and coffee cups, mugs, kullarhs, planters and more.
The Shop participated in many more events and exhibitions in this month. The key amongst them were “Going Natural Exhibition” at Solace spa, at Saroj Nalini and All India Women’s Conference. We managed to reach out to many new customers over this period and create more awareness about the Shop. Our collections of Kantha, stoles, coir items, Kutchi shawls, garments, Rasa were liked and appreciated by all.
Watch for our upcoming events and exhibitions. Log on to our website and keep an eye on our Facebook page.