Artisans Micro Finance director Smita Mankad quit ABN Amro to do something she
believed was worthwhile. "If you want to grow at the pace we have grown, you have to
carry your supplier base with you," she says, emphasising that Fabindia's growth
will be hampered unless the artisans grew with it.
Everything Fabindia sells has the "element of the hand" in it, so one can't step up
production overnight like in China's mass-produced factories. The community-owned
companies offer the persons owning the hands a better life, such as, by providing an
alternative to the local Shylock.
"If he wants to get his daughter married and needs money, he can sell his shares and
realise the appreciation. He can also take a loan by offering his shares as
collateral," says Bissell.
Image: Ethnic artwork. | Photograph: Fabindia website
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