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Sabyasachi Mukherjee, one of the leading Indian fashion designers, is gearing up to set cooperatives of rural craftswomen across the country- starting with West Bengal, Rajasthan and Gujarat.
This is the first time that a prominent fashion designer is preparing a project wherein the fabric which is produced by rural craftswomen will directly reach a fashion house without a middleman.
"The first cooperative will be in place in Barasat, West Bengal, by April next year. I am going to take the same model to Nandigram (a political hotbed in West Bengal right now) soon," says Sabyasachi, who is currently readying up for a show at the New York Fashion Week to be held from September 5 to 12.
"I have earned enough money to eliminate the middlemen in this business and ensure that the rural craftswomen get their due share of money for the hard work they put in," Sabyasachi added. The cooperative business model he's planned out is quite simple: His fashion house will buy the product directly from the rural craftswomen at 'reasonable' prices. Half of the money will be given to the workers and a part of the remaining money will be deposited into a single-user personal bank account of the craftswomen. Some of the money will be kept with the cooperative to buy raw materials.
Sabyasachi adds, "If you go and see the conditions of the rural craftswomen in the villages of our country, you will understand what I mean. They are starving! I am capable of taking their craft to the international level and get them the money they deserve. Then why not? They (middlemen) need to take a walk. I know that it is a bold step. But this is how I am. I am glad that I am finally being able to do something that I have always dreamt of."
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