Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce marketplace, and Department of MSME and Mines, Government of Karnataka, announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote the state’s Arts, Crafts and Handloom sectors, by bringing them on to e-commerce and providing market access.
Flipkart said that the partnership under the Flipkart Samarth programme will enable local artisans, weavers and craftsmen of Karnataka to showcase their hallmark products to a pan-India customer base.
Both the Government of Karnataka and the Flipkart Group will focus on creating avenues to increase business and trade inclusion opportunities for these underserved segments of the society, thereby adding further thrust to Made in India efforts.
Flipkart Samarth seeks to break entry barriers for artisans by extending time-bound incubation support, which includes benefits in the form of onboarding, free cataloguing, marketing, account management, business insights and warehousing support.
The partnership will see renowned Karnataka based brands- Cauvery – Karnataka Handicrafts Development Corporation and Priyadarshini Handlooms, part of Karnataka Handlooms Development Corporation joining the Flipkart Samarth programme.
Commenting on the partnership, Maheshwar Rao, Principal Secretary, Department of MSME and Mines, Government of Karnataka, said, “The collaboration with Flipkart will be instrumental in driving commercial and social development in the state. This partnership will help in taking the local handicrafts and handlooms businesses of Karnataka to a national consumer base. MSMEs in the state will also benefit from skills of branding, digital marketing and financial management while showcasing the locally made high-quality products.”
“We are delighted to partner with the Government of Karnataka to give the state’s artisans the opportunity to showcase and sell their products on a transparent platform; with a promise of wider market access. These are challenging times, and as a homegrown platform, we believe it is our responsibility to boost local businesses and catalyze ecosystem partnerships to help transform them. Flipkart Samarth will continue helping underserved communities in breaking social and demographic barriers and bringing them into the fold of the formal economy.”, said Rajneesh Kumar, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Flipkart Group.
Flipkart Samarth works closely with reputed NGOs and Government bodies and livelihood missions to reach a large number of rural entrepreneurs, with a special focus on women-led enterprises, differently-abled entrepreneurs, artisans, and weavers, who often face obstacles such as lack of access to working capital, poor infrastructure, and inadequate training.
The Flipkart Group is one of India’s leading digital commerce entities and includes group companies Flipkart, Myntra, and PhonePe. Started in 2007, Flipkart has enabled millions of consumers, sellers, merchants and small businesses to be a part of India’s e-commerce revolution, with a registered customer base of over 200 million, offering over 150 million products across 80+ categories.
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