Eco Shepherd developed the strategic plan for India’s Save the Loom charitable trust, focused on creating value and demand for India’s handloom fabric. The plan was designed to be part of the solution that lifts the handloom industry out of poverty, in alignment with UN Sustainable Development Goal #1 calling for the end of poverty in all its manifestations by 2030.
There are three pillars forming the mountain of poverty wrapped around India’s 3.5 million handloom artisans: Value, Infrastructure, and Perception. Value because handloom artisans earn dignity-erasing commodity prices in the wholesalers’ race to the bottom. Infrastructure around good working conditions are almost non-existent in this de-centralised, principally rural cottage industry, which translates to noncompliance with procurement guidelines of most medium – large fashion houses. Lastly, widespread negative perceptions around the industry’s relevance in a modern, luxury context, leaves handloom stuck in low value markets. There are initiatives working around the edges of these pillars; mostly grassroots incremental step-changes that even cumulatively, lack scale to achieve the 2030 goal.
The plan included securing grants from the Kerela Government to establish a shop/showcase where beautiful handloom fabrics meet fashion. As well as income from the shop, this became the base for PR (getting Vogue India to do a feature) and textile based workshops (a second revenue stream). There was also a range of sarees for lawyers and advocates, which was featured across mutliple publications in India.
The eradication of poverty in India’s handloom industry needs revenues of US$7.6 billion from 1.7 billion metres of fabric, and 35,000 weaving studios meeting international standards for good working conditions. This represents just 0.4% share of fabric volumes used by the global fashion industry. India already has the productivity capacity (1) and 160,000 weaving cooperatives that could have working conditions upgraded to fulfil this target. Add a scalable infrastructure, marketing that showcases handloom craftsmanship in a luxury context, and strategic guidance from a group of India’s most successful business women, then this target is genuinely achievable.
