Marketplaces
I was browsing through India’s best known online marketplace for tanjore paintings. I felt the amount quoted was too high. I maybe wrong though. I remember my MD in my first company talking to tanjore painting suppliers for Rs.1500 back in 2001-2.
But there are not many options and sellers to check out in the site anyway. A monopoly is always good for the business but bad for the consumer.
The ancient Indian arts and crafts makers should be taught how to use internet to better their own businesses. Why do we wait for the Ambanis and the Sam Waltons to bridge the gap between the consumers and the farmer / artist/ craftsman? And yet crib that they are killing the small traders?
What have the small traders done to learn to leverage this medium. Why the internet still perceived to be only for the IT pro?
The internet is nothing if not a great leveler. Fundamental yet low cost initiatives like these will be far more potent than writing cheques to NGOs who claim to protect our heritage, culture, idly, vadai, sambhar etc from foreign invaders. The language is not as great a barrier as it was two years ago. The millions of thamizh blogs stand testimony to that fact more than anything else.
Its not so okay to crib about inadequate internet infrastructure and sit on our bum, we do not have road infrastructure either but still we do make use of whatever pathetic infrastructure we have and travel, right?
All said and done, the days of regional language/local internet marketplaces and portals is not far off. This is my hunch.
We might as well have a social networking site where Muniyaandi and Palaniswamy, both small retailers, scrap each other through through their mobile phones about daily vegetable sales, Poppy seed (kasa kasa) being more expensive than cashew nut (its a fact btw), bad weather spoiling the tomatoes in koyambedu market etc. Why not??
June 25th, 2008 at 11:50 am
PK, since you are in the same field (IT), you put forth your suggestions easily but I think it would be more appropriate to think from the artisans’/farmers’ shoes as well.
June 25th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
Ravi
First our small traders should be taught how to use the net properly by people who are busy fighting the big retailers.
we are underestimating our folks. If only they understand the intricacies of the internet better, they will fight tooth and nail with the big retailers IMHO.
The annachis of today, have seen bigger oppression in the last fifty years in India.
June 26th, 2008 at 1:57 am
No PK, I am not under estimating them. Never! It is just that they don’t have proper guidance. Again, its like “who ties the bell?” syndrome cropping up again. Saravana Stores’ properitor was no MBA or a big business tycoon but his retail business as inspired Big Bazaar (as told by Big Bazaar’s properitor to Economic Times). So its not that they can’t do but do not have proper leads.
June 26th, 2008 at 2:02 am
PK
My cousin is an artist expert in Tanjore Paintings. I put up a site for her and she got quite a few enquiries through that site.
http://www.chakkarapani.com/tanjoreart
Now, I am guilty of not changing her contact details as she has shifted from Pondy to Chennai. Just in case, you are interested in the paintings, let me know and I can put in touch with her.
June 26th, 2008 at 2:29 am
Chakra
you can ask her to use marketplaces like ebaY.in
I mentioned tanjore paintings bcos my first employer used to make lot of money on this by sourcing it from individual smalltime artisans and selling it thru his portal:)
June 30th, 2008 at 1:19 am
Interesting post. I guess the big IT firms need to take a project up as corporate social responsibility to help set up portals for small traders. I am sure they have the best IT brains in town and if they could spare a few hours, they can make a world of difference to many in India. Instead of waiting for government subsidy and tax cuts, the private sector in form of individuals need to take an active participation.
If technology is not put into good use for the development of the country who else will?
June 30th, 2008 at 6:54 am
malesh
I agree.. Unfortunately most of the IT biggies are more worried about meeting quarterly guidance estimates.
CSR is more seen as PR exercise.
June 30th, 2008 at 7:38 am
True. When people become sincere and dont exhaust budgets because they have to, then we would witness true CSR in action : ) till then : (