We are super excited to launch our online shop! Over the past eight years we have had countless requests from friends and customers from across the world to make our products more accessible! So, here we are....
Let me begin by telling you how it got started. Our philosophy has been and is simple - we believe in connecting people from around the world to quality products from India. Quality products that are made under fair conditions and that support social development locally in different parts of India.
We believe in sharing Indian products (especially the much sought after high quality linen products) with the rest of the world. We would enjoy working with large retailers just as much as we do working with the smaller boutiques around the world. However, we have decided to sell directly to our faithful clientele simply because we have a story that is sincere and one that is not very common.
We believe that the best way to support India is to work with those who not only support fair trading practices but also demand it. Additionally, we believe that working with anyone who is local is not the same as working with someone who is passionate about quality, who has an eye for aesthetic design and who is always on the hunt for unique and special products. Finally, we believe that the best way to make Indian products meaningful is to tell the stories behind the products (please follow-up on Instagram) and to support local sustainable initiatives that are helping to make a difference in the lives of disadvantaged Indians.
Once we embarked on this adventure, we have been on the go! We have learnt many lessons, met many amazing people on this adventure, watched numerous masters of craft at work and been awed on more than one occasion. This is what keeps us going. Having said that, we have had our fair share of "uh oh" moments like when we had a big show opening and the shipment of products did not arrive until after the show (even though the shipment was to arrive three months before the dates of the show), or when the manufacturing partner we had worked with initially for the first couple of years turned out to be just a savvy salesmen without the infrastructure to support socially responsible productions, etc.
I must also confess that my designs do not always come out exactly the way I had intended for them to be. The skilled men and women, who actually make the products, often take executive decisions that give my designs a special flair. A distinct touch or embellishment. I have not only grown to like this creative partnership but have come to totally expect and appreciate it (we have had very ghastly results only on two occasions in eight years)!
With every blog post, I will try to highlight an organization or an individual or a group that we have worked with and/or continue to work so you have a better sense of what goes on behind the scenes and/or who makes BODA products a reality.
I would like to begin with the Women's Welfare Mutually Aided Society on the outskirts of Hyderabad. This NGO works only with women, especially women who live in the poorer neighborhoods and slums of Hyderabad. Most of the women come from household where the husband or the male head of the family abandons the family for a much younger spouse. Therefore, many women when they begin working with the NGO, they lack any form of formal education and they often are very shy homemakers without any skills. The goal of the NGO is to provide them with a platform where they could gain and hone a skillset that would provide a sustainable livelihood to the women and their dependents.
We are truly proud to be associated with such an organization and to have some of our products made by these women!
When I am back, I will have exciting news about a new line of women's and men's clothing that we are launching soon!
Stay tuned.
Namasté from the team at BODA Bazaar!