We adore the fair trade wholesalers and innovators in ethical, sustainable companies. This week the spotlight is on Indian based social entrepreneur business that empowers girls to realize their creative, and leadership capacity.
The sustainable handmade gifts and accessories distributor located in Texas, USA will help to turn 2,000 marginalized women in India into artisan entrepreneurs that will create a better future for themselves and their families.
Matr Boomie functions with remarkable women in Mumbai, teaching them how to choose the standard arts they have learnt by their ancestors and change them into jewelry and gifts which may be marketed internationally. Their duty is to create opportunities for women and minorities to realize their creative, economic and leadership potential.
The social effect business model combines the best of both worlds: the trust, professionalism and reliability of an established wholesale company plus exclusive, modern, boho-chic styles that are appealing to ethical customers.
In a country where traditionally women have been required to rely upon men to their most basic needs, the venture is also using a ripple effect on women’s empowerment.
“When we go to a village, we all search for girls to work with as people,” says Matr Boomie Co-founder Manish Gupta. “Suddenly, girls are the sought after ones. That often shifts the whole community’s admiration towards women”
Helping women artisans succeed in business has brought to the forefront the need for literacy to keep records for orders and supplies. Matr Boomie has enlisted the support of a nonprofit arm that teaches girls how to read both Hindi and English. Traditionally women have needed to rely upon a person for anything related to business and writing, so once women are equipped with the instrument of literacy they’re permitted to not only handle their financing, but also their lifestyles.
Working with feminine artisans has also shown other factors affecting girls and women in Indian society. Being a very cultural society, there are lots of laws and rituals that simplify everyday lifestyle. One of the most impeding is when women are menstruating they are not allowed to cook, attend temple, travel and are essentially treated like outcasts. However this changes immediately when women have access to sanitary napkins, which are usually unknown of in rural villages, absent, or simply too expensive.
Matr Boomie have opted to take care of this issue as another social impact business they could turn over to the women they associate with in India. They’ve purchased and set up machinery for the village and also have trained the regional women to function so as to produce the napkins. The girls then take over manufacturing and are able to sell these napkins within their community at a small margin.
Every one of these tiny changes together are creating a difference for both Western consumers and Indian girls. Beautiful traditional arts that were on the point of being lost are currently available for sale in boutiques around America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand and are producing cultural change and allowing girls in rural India to catch up to women in other cities in terms of empowerment and education.n
“The chain has been broken,” says Matr Boomie Co-founder Ruchi Gupta. “Rather than hearing stories of girls accepting the status of second class citizens, they feel positive as they’re engaging in company. That confidence leads to them engaging more in their household decisions. And they participate in politics, elections, and their community’s decisions. We see the changes come faster and faster.”
Sustainable business is enabling a complete sector of Indian society, proving this kind of assistance is more effective in the long term compared to a charity hand out, since the girls are installed with their own sustainable businesses.
The passion of this Matr Boomie organisation is truly inspirational and uplifting and has made a significant difference in the lifestyles of partner artisans, their families and their communities.
And the goods are just as beautiful as they are mindful. Each product includes a tag with the inspiring story of the woman who made the present, encapsulating the basic nature of Matr Boomie which is girls reaching across continents to share beauty with one another.
