Tuesday 28 February 2017

Handicrafts stalls at railway stations

Should handicraft stalls be there at railway station platforms? Will it bring more sale and more revenue for the artisans/sellers?

Views of handicraft artisans cum women entrepreneurs

According to a handicraft artisan cum women entrepreneur belonging to a self help group making traditional paintings, paintings should reach one's own country and foreign countries, and traditional paintings should become famous. Definitely, it is preferable to have a spot at railway station to sell the paintings because there will be increase in earnings.The space should be provided free of cost. People who are interested in paintings normally buy but for others they just browse and move on. How much money we spend normally we want to double the profit. So if we spend the money but we get double profit then it is worth spending. Traditional painting stalls at railway station is very much desired.

According to another handicraft artisan mainly dealing in hand loom clothes, they exhibit their handloom items in many places. Their own house is their shop, where they accept cash as well as installments to sell their products. In Railway they are interested,but time will need to be spent which would be difficult. The sale would be more or not would depend on the people. If the train is late then those people will come to the spot of handicraft stall but while purchasing handloom items people would prefer to buy from shops as they can visit many shops and compare, can  keep cash memos and can also exchange the material and these are the benefits of buying from shops for handloom products. There may be other type of passengers also who may have come to that particular place for 4-5 days so they may immediately not be interested to visit the handicraft stall and when they will get the time they may come and see but yes definitely sale may increase. People need food at railway station so they immediately buy it so food needs are met at that time itself but it cannot be said the same for handicraft items at railway station because handicrafts items depend on culture of the place so need is an important factor and the sale may depend on the needs of people. But by selling handicrafts at railway stations, the products and the organizations will get advertisement. For small handicraft items it is a good idea.

According to another handicraft artisan cum women entrepreneur making jute products, basically foot fall is required for a handicraft seller, which may increase but there should be proper preparation to have a handicraft stall at railway stations. There should be safe zone to sell the products at railway stations like security, lights, CCTV camera. Handicrafts are valuable items, it is hand work and the items are prepared with lot of hard work. Handicraft stalls at railway station platform should be there.

According to another handicraft artisan cum women entrepreneur, to maintain the stall, man power would be required so where will that manpower come from? What would be the terms of payment meaning it will be sold at fixed rate or at MRP. Handicraft stalls at railway stations could provide advertisement/marketing opportunities for the products. Handicraft stalls should be there at railway stations.

According to another handicraft artisan cum women entrepreneur making cloth dresses, handicraft stalls should be there at railway stations, because then public will get all sorts of convenience at railway stations like even ready made hand crafted clothes which they may have needed and can buy it from railway stations.

According to another handicraft artisan cum women entrepreneur,  if passengers have to give gifts and have not been able to purchase it then even at railway stations they can buy the gifts. Handicraft stall is preferable at railway stations.

According to few other handicraft artisans, this will bring good advertisement for the handicraft organization and their products all over India.

 View of a Food stall owner at railway station

According to a food stall owner at railway platform, only rich people can put stalls at railway stations or railway platforms. One has to deposit security money in several lakhs with the railways, if it is division then more money has to be deposited and if it is small station less money needs to be deposited as security but it is in lakhs, then there is hiring cost for the space which is approximately Rs 1500/- daily and the electricity cost is very high which is approximately Rs 9 per unit. So the total monthly expenditure is about Rs 48, 000/- but the sale is also there.

According to railway, there are different sort of public traveling every day so market should increase but one technical point needs to be taken into consideration that the price at platform may increase because one will have to hire the space, electricity cost would be there and all this would reflect on price of the handicraft item so the handicraft seller will have to concentrate on price. Senior divisional commercial manager allots the space which happens through tender. Since it is development work the department of handicrafts should request railway to give the space at subsidized cost. Security of handicraft items will be there as there are CCTV cameras and rail GRPS. Because of these handicraft stalls at platforms there will be no difficulty in the operation of railways. There is one handicraft counter at Howrah Railway station.

Handicraft development and marketing organizations can look into this. 

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