Sasha Shop

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Sasha - More than a shop

Sasha is a not-for-profit organisation working with more than a hundred artisans and craft communities all over India. Since it’s inception in 1978, Sasha has worked towards developing craft communities so that their skills and creativity find expression, recognition and fulfilment.

Over the years, Sasha has worked towards addressing these issues.

Craft Revival - Reviving traditional designs, organising workshops and exhibitions both in India and abroad has facilitated a more equal relationship between crafts persons and their customers while going a long way towards inspiring a sense of history and dignity.
Local Markets - Artisan groups are encouraged and assisted to explore local markets and take part in government sponsored and other exhibitions. The ongoing process of design and development has equipped most groups to successfully modify their products to suit different market needs.
Networks - Sasha has always recognised the need to create a close network of supportive work relationships between the different artisan groups they work with and a space for sharing skills, experiences and resources for initiating change through a process of growing together.
EDF - Apart from design and marketing inputs, Sasha has assisted groups with managerial and financial guidance, setting systems and procedures in place where they were needed. In it’s 25th year, Sasha has set up the Enterprise Development Foundation to use its multi-dimensional experience to provide business and skills training to small enterprises working with craft.
Fair Trade - Sasha is a member of the International Federation for Alternative Trade and a founding member of the Fair Trade Forum, Asia. Sasha follows practices and trains craft producers in best practices and all the different aspects of fair trade.

Initially, Sasha only exported craft to other nonprofit organizations, but eventually this complete dependance on overseas markets increased the producer group's vulnerability and reliance on Sasha. To address this problem Sasha opened a domestic retail outlet in Calcutta in October 1981.