Research Journal of Management Sciences ___________________________________________ISSN 2319–1171

Vol. 2(2), 23-26, February (2013) Res. J. Management Sci.

Study of Handicraft Marketing Strategies of Artisans in

Uttar Pradesh and Its Implications
Waqar Ahmad Khan1 and Zeeshan Amir2
1
Research Scholar, Faculty of Management and Research, Integral University, Lucknow, U.P., INDIA
2
Dean, FMR, Integral University, Lucknow, U.P., INDIA

Available online at: www.isca.in

Received 21/12 18th December 2012, revised 17/1/13 2012, accepted 30/1/13 2012
Abstract
At present the rural producers/suppliers are struggling to market their products and services due to various reasons. The
performance of the manufacturer and artisans both for financing and marketing of handicrafts is far from satisfaction.
Artisans are depending on the middlemen for raw materials, finance and market for the finished products because of their
illiteracy, ignorance and poverty. The success of handicrafts depends on how well the artisans can produce the articles and
introduced in the market in keeping with the tastes and preferences of consumers. Industrialization in any kind of arts and
crafts must be recognized by the market of consumers, through the exchange of commodities in order to make the artistic and
ethnic value with a touch of innovation. This research paper is based on marketing concepts of four P’s i.e. Product, Price,
Place and Promotion.

Keywords: Handicraft, marketing, artisans, rural marketing, rural retail marketing, marketing innovations.

Introduction Literature Review: Prajapati and Laila1 explaining that the

diversity marketing in craft industry, recommend regular market
Handicrafts are unique expressions of a particular culture or survey to compile market information to design workable
community through local craftsmanship and materials. It is no solutions to solve market problems.
longer possible to look at traditional artisan communities and
their products in isolation from global market trends and Thaimani2 study focused on the lack of market awareness is the
competition. Handicrafts are part of a much larger home main obstacle for any village enterprises to put up their products
accessory market, which includes handcrafted, semi handcrafted, in urban markets.
and machine-made goods. The home accessory market is strongly
influenced by fashion trends, consumer purchasing patterns, and Dak3 has been listed out reasons for the failure of village crafts
economic conditions in end markets. In many cases, artisans are such as poor designs, low quality materials and inefficient
out of touch with those end markets, which presents a challenge market approaches; consequently, these weaknesses are
to those seeking to export their products. The response of exploited by machine made urban craft units, who apparently
consumers to handicrafts is unpredictable. Handicraft production lockout village crafts from global markets.
is a major form of employment in many developing countries and
often a significant part of the export economy. With increased Florence4 review suggest strategic measures to improve markets
globalization, however, products are becoming more and more for village crafts, often supply of scattered, insufficient and
commoditized, with artisan producers facing increased unsystematic data on production and sales; will be the major
competition from producers all over the world, particularly in obstacles for them to develop quantitative marketing strategies.
China and other Asian countries. The All India Handicrafts Board Resource centre–RCIP5 reveals that the euro crises can affect
assisted the state governments in setting up their Design and the profit margins and hence will difficult to remain in the
Technical centers in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Kashmir, Rajasthan, market. The players in the leather industry are small & cottage
Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, leather manufacturers and do not have the financial potential to
Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Orissa, Manipur, Tripura, Haryana, use hedging techniques.
West Bengal and Goa. In these centers, craftsmen and the artists
jointly work out new designs and items in selected crafts. These Sanyal, Banerjee and Majumder6 performed study on the
artists strive to combine the traditional with modern. The Leather Industry in India by using the Constant Market Share
handicraft items are carefully made by artesian so that they retain (CMS) Analysis, find the change in export from (1991-2006)
the ethnic value, while they can be put to modern day use. The and conveys that the leather export has been seen decreasing
designers have to keep in mind the changing needs of the due the change in demand in the world, change and market
consumers, especially the foreign markets. competiveness.

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Research Journal of Management Sciences ________________________________________________________ ISSN 2319–1171
Vol. 2(2), 23-26, February (2013) Res. J. Management Sci.

Objectives: i. To study the importance of marketing in The artisan-cum-proprietor of the unit looks after all the
handicraft sector. ii. To study the marketing concepts based on functions with the help of members of his family. Most of his
four P’s and try to relate with handicraft. time is spent in the production. In case, he has a little time at his
disposal, he uses it for acquiring raw materials. Usually, he has
Research Methodology little knowledge and market information relating to his products.
Hopefully, the artisans in handicraft industry give little
This research paper is based on the secondary data by exploring
importance to the vital marketing function. The important
various secondary data resources such as old research papers
marketing aspects are discussed under the heads of the
various journals, books internet, some of the governmental data etc.
following are: i. Product, ii. Price, iii. Place, iv.Promotion.
The study is descriptive in nature and therefore the information I- Product: A product is a set of tangible and intangible
presented is based on secondary data. Secondary data has been attributes, including packaging, color, price, manufacturer's
studied from various documents such as books, newsletters, prestige, retailer's prestige, and manufacturer's and retailer's
reports, magazines, journals, newspaper, internet, as well as services, which the buyer may accept as offering want-
from existing literature to understand the marketing strategies in satisfaction.
handicraft business.
Product-Line: Handicraft: Firms which market only one
Importance of Handicrafts: Handicraft sector occupies a product are rare today. Most firms offer a product line. A
prime position in the Indian economy. It is the largest employer, product line is a group of products related in function or
next to agriculture. The sector, while providing livelihood for customer purchase needs. The benefits of changing the
thousands of artisans, provides avenues for realization of social composition of the product line, by either adding or subtracting
and cultural potential of millions of people. The mythological, products, depend on a number of factors- the preferences of
religious, social, historical and artistic expressions in crafts consumers, the tactics of competitors, the firm's cost structure,
symbolize the strengths of Indian heritage while combining in and from the product to another name but a few. The handicraft
these crafts both utility and beauty. units produce a number of products applying the concept of
product line. The size of product line depends on the demand for
High employment potential, low per capita investment and high products and availability of resources like financial and raw
value addition, involvement of women and weaker section, eco material. In the process of assessing the demand for the products
friendliness and the potential to stimulate creative talents make and resources availability, the artisans from time to time add
the sector one of the most preferred sectors in the process of new products to its existing product line or drop some of its
economic development. present products.

India which consists of a variety of ethnic traditions and culture The products which are not profitable are usually deleted from
is also a treasure house of Indian handicrafts. Exquisite the product line. The decision whether to discontinue a product
handicrafts using diverse raw materials are produced in different is often based on how fast it moves. Deletion of some of the
parts of the country. This include art metal ware, wood ware, products from product line may also be a practice in handicrafts.
hand printed textiles and scarves, leather crafts, hand knotted Handicrafts designs: The Design of a handicraft product
carpets and embroidered goods, wood design, shawls as art should be in accordance with the tastes and preferences of
ware, stone carvings, imitation jewellery and miscellaneous customers. There are three types of designs viz., conventional,
other handicrafts. modern, combination of conventional and modern which are
usually adopted by artesian. Conventional designs are age-old
One of the unique feature of the handicrafts is that more often and traditional designs. While modern designs are in keeping
the same item of the handicraft, produced in different regions, with the changes of consumer preferences and tastes.
are different from each other in terms of the craftsmanship, Conventional and modern is a combination of both types.
style, color combination and finish by artesian creativity.
Product planning and development in Handicraft: Product
Marketing Practices in Handicraft7: Marketing touches planning and development can be found even in handicrafts.
everyone's life. Marketing involves a large number of activities, Handicrafts are the products of creativity and workmanship.
including Marketing research, Product development, Artisans, usually, strive for excellence in their crafts by
Distribution, Pricing, Advertising, and Personal selling, Sales undertaking product planning and development.
promotion, Packaging and Branding. Marketing combines
several activities designed to sense, serve and satisfy consumer Expansion in Handicraft: Expansion is increasing the present
needs while meeting the goals of the organization. scale of operation either by mechanizing the process of
production or by enhancing tile installed capacity. Expansion is
Handicraft units, which are mostly run by individuals with sole- undertaken when there is more demand for the products. It can
proprietary form of organization can’t afford to have separate also be undertaken in anticipation of future demand. However,
and well-organized marketing system. expansion involves finance, without adequate finance,

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Research Journal of Management Sciences ________________________________________________________ ISSN 2319–1171
Vol. 2(2), 23-26, February (2013) Res. J. Management Sci.

expansion activity cannot be taken. The expansion of the unit producers may sell to private dealers, who in turn, sell to galaxy
can be done in various ways; that is by mechanization, of customers. The third channel, handicraft producers may sell
enhancing the installed capacity and increasing manpower. to All India Handicraft Development Corporation, which in
turn, sells to customers through its sales emporia and State
II –Pricing: Price is a measure of what one must exchange in owned emporia. The fourth channel, handicrafts producers may
order to obtain a desired good or service. Price is the monetary sell their articles to co-operative society which, in turn, may sell
expression value and is the focal point of the entire exchange to All India Handicrafts Development Corporation which may
process. Historically, prices have been set by buyers and sellers sell to State owned emporia which, in turn, may sell to
negotiating with each other. Sellers would ask for a higher price customers.
than they expected to pay. Through bargaining they would
arrive at an acceptance price. Setting one price for all buyers is IV- Promotion: Basically, it is communication information
relatively modern idea. between buyer and seller to change attitudes and behavior of
Fixing the price in Handicraft: The craftsmen are unable to consumers. Promotion-mix includes advertising, sales
estimate the exact cost, of production due to several reasons. promotion, personal selling, publicity and packaging.
Hence, they find it difficult to fix the price basing on cost of
production. The craftsmen have said that they fix prices of Advertising of Handicraft: Advertising is not undertaken by
articles basing on its market acceptance and basing on the price and respondent. The small scale operation of the artisans does
offered by master craftsmen, dealers and co-operative societies. not permit the craftsmen to undertake advertising of their
Prices of handicraft articles are fixed by craftsman himself, products individually. For the promotion of handicrafts, the
master craftsman, dealer and co-operative societies, the extent Corporation has been undertaking publicity, exhibitions,
of influence of these people in fixing the prices differ from craft printing of brochures, and participation in trade fairs. The
to craft. Dealers and co-operative societies as viewed by a Corporation is also putting up hoardings in important places and
majority of the respondents influence a great deal in fixing the centers to tourist interest, which would serve as a good medium
prices or handicrafts. of publicity. Other forms of publicity include participation in
trade fairs, and sponsoring trade / study teams covering
Taxes in Handicraft: Sales tax is not only high on handicrafts particular crafts to other States in the country.
but also varied from craft to craft. It is suggested that the State
Government may exempt handicrafts from sales tax, as it is Promotions in Handicraft: Sales promotion covers a wide
already done in States like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala. range of techniques that provide an extra short-term incentive or
The absence of sales tax on handicrafts will result in reduction inducement to patronize a store or buy a product. Techniques
of Handicrafts prices and thereby increase the sales. It’s quite include demonstrations and exhibitions, samples, premiums,
difficult for artesian to survive in market unless government coupons, games and contests, displays and package inserts. In
should protect them. general, sales promotion is designed to reinforce the other
III-Place: Distribution is concerned with the activities involved factors of the promotion mix and to improve their short-term
in transferring goods from producers to final buyers and users. It effectiveness.
includes the physical activities, such as transporting, storing
goods and the legal, promotional activities for transferring Marketing problem in Handicraft: Artisans face several
ownership. problems in marketing. In view of shortage of financial
resources and small scale of operation; advertising publicity
The artisans depend mostly upon master craftsmen, dealers and cannot be undertaken by artisans. Hence, it is suggested that the
co-operative societies for disposal of their finished products. Corporation may increase advertising and publicity for all the
Some producers sell directly to the consumers, whereas some crafts. The Corporation should save the artisans from the
sell through dealers, master craftsmen and sales emporia. exploitative clutches of middlemen by purchasing handicrafts at
Sometimes, the dealers and master craftsmen sell the handicraft remunerative prices from artisans by giving payments promptly.
products through sales emporia, which directly contact the Thus, government Uttar Pradesh of Handicrafts required to, play
galaxy of consumers through its various outlets located at a vital role in solving the marketing problems faced by artisans.
various important towns in India. There are certain limitations in
the present channels of distribution of handicrafts. Co-operative Suggestions: In order to make handicrafts reach the top spot the
societies are not serving' as a channels or distribution. following suggestions may be implemented.
Handicrafts producers are depending on the dealers and master
craftsmen for selling handicrafts to consumers. Sales markets Organizing marketing network of Handicraft: Absence of
are purchasing handicrafts from dealers and master craftsmen; systematic marketing network has been a discouraging factor in
but not from handicrafts manufacturers. this region. In my opinion, the artisans must be organized by
themselves under the co-operative umbrella for marketing their
The first channel, handicrafts producers may sell their articles products by themselves. For this more and more linkages must
directly to their customers. Second channel, handicraft be developed with outside parties.

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Research Journal of Management Sciences ________________________________________________________ ISSN 2319–1171
Vol. 2(2), 23-26, February (2013) Res. J. Management Sci.

Copy right of Handicraft: Design registration should be done. Positioning of handicraft Products: Handicrafts, which are
That means whatever designs any artisan has introduced on any produced with traditional skill, are gradually facing competition
item should be registered. Then no one can copy it. from machine made products, which give greater uniformity and
better finish. For large number of handicraft items, there have
Price Uniformity in Handicraft: It is often complained that been neither substitutes nor competition from any significant
prices of handicraft products are very much erratic and not entrant into the field. Thus, suppliers, new entrants and
uniform. There is significant difference in prices of the same substitute products do not appear to be significant factors in the
article if purchase from two shops or from two places. In this strategic positioning of Handicrafts. By the process of isolation
situation the customer feels very much exploited and harassed. we come to the buyers and buyer groups. This also includes the
This might have very bad repercussion on the demand of the middlemen and distribution chain.
products. Categorization of art in each craft should be done
according to the skill exhibited and quality of raw materials Conclusion
used and pricing should be made accordingly by a team of
experts. Handicraft is such a product that when a buyer likes it, he is
prepared to pay a price, which may be far in excess of the
Awareness Creation: The majority of artisans are not aware standard price of the product. The prime consideration is his
about various new schemes like loan at concessional rates, free liking of the product. Channel agents, such as middlemen,
tools, dyes and chemical, work shed-cum-housing facilities. It is retailer or distributor try to capitalize on such possibilities and
the duty of the promotional organizations to make the weavers earn significant profit almost wholly at the cost of the
aware about the various welfare schemes and to implement the craftsmen. Handicraft product may be categorized on the basis
same on a war footing. of price, export on domestic market, ease of maintenance, ease
of storage, utility value or decorative value and modernity or
More research and development in Handicraft: For traditional orientation. Besides, it is necessary for likeminded
improving the quality of the products R and D is a must. Many institutions to come together to provide the strategic direction
more new items and new designs can be developed with the and action plans to evolve systems. Procedure and norms related
help of R and D. to design, market, technology, innovation and quality of life so
that product designs, technology and marketing become integral
Foreign Collaboration with designers and artisans: Foreign part of the craft up gradation and repositioning process.
master designers may be invited to the design centers to render
Craft is the standard mark of creativity and the essential
guidance to the craftsmen.
differentiator for a country in the sweeping wines of
globalization. Most importantly, craft has to become a
Value addition in Handicraft: The various specialized
fountainhead for both industrial design and communication
organization, like DC (handicrafts), may help the local units to
design, for deriving the differential advantage of Indian design
produce various value added items with would not only help to
in the global market place.
penetrate the local market, but also help in exporting of such
items to foreign countries. References
Publicity in Handicraft: To attract more and more buyers both 1. Prajapati and Laila, Development of Handloom Industry, Deep
within and outside the country, promotional and marketing & Deep, New Delhi (1981)
organizations must give due emphasis on wide publicity of 2. Thaimani, K. K., Handicrafts during seventh five year plan.,
various local products. For this frequent buyers and sellers paper presented in National Seminar on development and
meets may be organized by promotional organizations. management of Handicrafts cooperative 24-26th November,
VAMNICOM (1987)
Exports of Handicraft: If systematic efforts are made, some of 3. Dak,T.M., Rural Industralistation: Challenges and Responses,
the selective products could emerge as a major foreign exchange North Book, Delhi, pp-23-24 (1989)
earner in the near future. However, before exporting of such 4. Florence, K., Uganda Handicrafts Export Strategy, ITC Report,
items care should be taken on product identification, quantum of WTO (2005)
production, supply arrangements, price, delivery, quality,
5. Resource Center RCIP, Euro zone crises to hamper leather industry, http
payment terms etc.
://www.fddiindia.com/publications/newsletter/2010/006-
June/FDDINL_264_25.06.2010.pdf, (2010)
Window display of Handicraft products: In whatever possible
manner, all the promotional and marketing organization, must 6. Sanyal, S., Banerjee, S. and Majumder, S., India’s Leather in the
World Market: Exploration of Recent Trends, Trade and
display the local items in various airports, railway stations, bus
Development Review 3 (1), 22 – 58 (2010)
stands, commercial centers etc. This will help the local artisans
to get more orders from foreign tourists, traders, marketing 7. Kotler, P., Marketing Management, Thomson Press (India) Ltd,
organization etc. New Delhi, (2003)

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