As you may already know, rapid urbanization and industrialisation has put traditional handicrafts in danger of dying out. When India awakened to the big world of e-retailing, the consumer got confident and comfortable buying every other product over the Internet, and that left us wondering as to why products by NGOs, self help groups, cottage industries, and village craftsmen are not easily available to the consumers.
Surely, we do have websites of some of the NGOs, on the likes of Amazon/ Ebay etc having a CSR page, but what about the smaller, lesser equipped, lesser resourced, yet equally skilled small scale setups? With time, they’re finding it increasingly difficult to get the right set of buyers, get corporate orders, and get the right amount of exposure to retail consumers. As a result, a part of our culture and heritage is dying out, but more importantly, they are losing their livelihood.
Cottage industries and micro enterprises who are not exposed to angel investors or venture capitalists must find other channels to raise funds. Crowdfunding could be the most viable option for such industries for the simple fact that they can raise small amounts from lots of people, without the burden of repayment of funds upon success of their venture. Read on to understand a few benefit of crowdfunding, for cottage industries and India as a whole.
Cottage industries boost the Indian economy
Did you know that small and medium scale enterprises contribute over 40% of India’s exports and more than 45% of industrial output? It is also believed that over 60% of total innovations from India have come from small scale industries. This is a huge boost to the economy, and adding greater financial support could make it grow further.
Employment and rural advancement
Immense talent and skill lies in all corners of India. Employment is easily one of the most important benefits that can come out of small-scale industries. Utilising their skills and domestic and local resources can help tackle the problem of rural and urban (since many migrate to metropolitans in hope of finding a job) unemployment.
Empowerment to rural women
In the past, Impact Guru has been able to use this crowdfunding India platform to provide a sustainable financial model to several small-scale startups run by women in traditional crafts and beyond.
Develops the entrepreneurial abilities
Crowdfunding for cottage industries may help them hone their business and managerial skills, and more importantly, give them a boost at marketing, awareness, and publicity of their products and services.
At Impact Guru, we believe that it is our duty to help our small and medium enterprises, cottage industries, and rural artisans excel in their crafts. By encouraging online fundraising and consequently a crowdfunding India, we could assist our artisans in becoming financially independent and reviving old business that may have shut down. The spirit of community development, volunteering, and support, is an integral part of the initiative.
Therefore we ask any and every one of you affiliated with cottage industries of small and medium enterprises to use our online fundraising platform and fulfill you financial requirements. A crowdfunding India has the potential to transform the work of these organizations and help them create a better life and a sustained living opportunity for many.
