1. [Type text] [Type text] [Type text]
Project – Kowdi Kutumba
Livelihood Improvement for the under-served communities of urban slums
The women of the urban slums indulge themselves in local patchwork art form of Kowdi.
By using and marketing the products they prepare, we are trying to improve the livelihoods
of the under-served families.

2. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
Kowdi Kutumba: An Effort to Improve the Livelihoods of the Urban
Under-Served Communities.
A Project Report submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Arts in Development (M.A. in Development)
Azim Premji University
UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF:
ORGANIZATION GUIDES: UNIVERSITY GUIDE:
Mr. Roshan Mascarenhas Mr. Balamurli Natarajan
Ms. Vaishali Rao Associate Professor, Azim
Premji University
COMPILED BY:
Anupa Chakraborty
Master of Arts in Development
Semester IV
MAD13026
January 9, 2015

3. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
ABSTRACT
One of the biggest challenges in India is to cope up with the wave of urbanization which has
been unleashed by the economic liberalization. Over 160 million people have migrated
from rural areas to urban cities in search of employment opportunities and better living
conditions. But, this has not worked out well for the migrants because there is lack of
infrastructure and employment opportunities for them that have given rise to illegal and
unhealthy slums in and around the out skirts of the mega cities and metros. The ill –
equipped urban systems and the informal housing that are the slums have expanded
exponentially in the last few decades without proper access to basic services such as
sanitation, healthcare, education, and law and order. This report shows the effort carried
out to improve an important aspect of the slum dwellers’ lives – livelihood improvement.
This includes providing alternative livelihood opportunities to the slum dwellers, mainly
the women. The women of the urban slums indulge themselves in local patchwork art form
of Kowdi. By helping them to tailor products out of those patchwork items and marketing
those products, we are making an effort to increase their livelihood opportunity and
income for their families. There are lots of expenses for a family and the larger the families
the more is the expense. Slums are places for the urban poor and in order to survive in
urban areas it is necessary that they have a regular employment source so as to provide
their families with the basic necessities of life. Therefore, SELCO Foundation has taken up
the initiative to start providing alternative livelihood solutions to the under - served
communities of the slums in Bangalore, one of the initiatives being the Kowdi Kutumba.

4. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
INTRODUCTION:
Poverty – an extreme form of underdevelopment - exists since the incomes of some people
are not adequate even to meet their basic consumption, and this can be due to several
reasons. Usually, the only asset of people living in slums is their ability to do physical
labour and they may end up in poverty, if the income earned from such (unskilled) labour
is not adequate to meet the needs of basic consumption and amenities. This can happen if
the number of jobs available and/or wage rate for unskilled work is low and hence the total
income that they can get in a year is inadequate to meet the basic consumption. There
could be vicious cycles that may lead to the persistent of poverty. There is a possible
linkage between population growth, natural resource use, and poverty or under-
development. The people in poverty who depend only on their physical labour to mobilize
food, water. etc., may have an incentive to have more number of `hands’ - more number of
children. For them, having children could be the only form of social security. This may
perpetuate poverty. The construction workers of the urban slums face all such vicious
cycles of poverty. The income which comes out of their work is also very low and therefore
there is a need for development intervention so as to provide them better livelihood not
only to the male workers but also the efficient women of their families.
WORKING ORGANIZATION – SELCO FOUNDATION:
It had been noticed by the sustainable energy practitioners that access to energy impacts
the rural as well as urban population in terms of livelihood, productivity, education, health
as well as living conditions. In 2010, SELCO Foundation was created as an independent not-
for-profit organization with a view to improve energy access for the rural and urban poor
to support their livelihood and overall quality of life. Since then, SELCO Foundation has
been expanding to provide reliable energy services for the impoverished sections of the
society. SELCO Foundation tries to link the sustainable energy to eradication of poverty
where it collaborates with local Non - Government Organizations, Financial Institutions,
Education Institutions and Social Enterprises. The Foundation therefore tries to spread its
innovations and services to the underserved communities.

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THE COMMUNITY:
Kowdi Kutumba are an under-served community living in Nagvara Palya, Bangalore, who
are migrants from North Karnataka and have been doing the patchwork form of Kowdi at a
household level making quilts for themselves with pieces of clothes put together. This art
form needs to be preserved as it is a traditional form of work of the Northern Karnataka.
Kowdi is a traditional craft form, an ethnic craft marketed locally by creating interest in the
culture and by maintaining high quality. Local social worker from community partner
organization identified the slum and the community living in Nagvar Palya. The community
is vulnerable due to insecure livelihood requiring market linkages and temporary
settlement status. SELCO Foundation, therefore, looked into the vulnerability of the people
of the slum with respect to employment opportunities and generation of income by using
energy as an entry point intervention to explore the potential livelihood avenues with
women from the slum in Nagvara Palya.
PRESENT LIVELIHOOD STATUS:
The Kowdi community is a group of people who have migrated from North Karnataka in
search of employment and a better quality of life. The problem with this fact is that these
people are not really skilled to get jobs in good enterprises in urban areas. They mostly get
the jobs of construction workers in the construction sites and they inhabit lands nearby the
construction sites itself. The male and female members of the community in Nagvara Palya
are mostly into construction work. A part of the female members also do housekeeping
works in the nearby apartments and earn some money. Most of the women who have kids
stay back in house and take care of the kids and only the male members go out for work.
Basically, construction work and Housekeeping work are the main source of livelihood for
the community. They are mostly into informal work sector and they do not have regular
jobs. Weekly they have 3 to 4 days of work. On an average each household has an income of
Rs. 4000 – Rs. 8000 in which they have to take care of the health, food, education and other
necessities within each family. Whatever they earn by then, either gets consumed fully or if
by luck they are able to save then they use it when they do not have work. The construction

6. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
work is not a regularized job for them and they are on contract basis or daily basis. So there
is a huge threat that they might lose the job any time. The contractors who employ the
members of this community also exploit them a lot. At times they pay low wages whereas
other times they delay in paying the wages at all. This irregularity and non - perennial
nature of their employment makes it necessary to provide them alternative and regular
kind of livelihood avenues.
PROBLEMS FACED BY THE KOWDI COMMUNITY:
The mass produced goods are steadily replacing utility items of daily use made by the
community. There is very limited public awareness of the cost effectiveness, functionality
and range of the Kowdi products. The urban consumers do not have access to many of the
products. The people within the Kowdi Community are bound in their struggle for their
own survival from the money lenders, traders and middlemen due to which they are unable
to focus on the work. Women struggle to enter the economic mainstream and therefore we
are trying to encourage them to make use of their traditional craft to become wage earners
and show them the way to get access to the market.
LINKS BETWEEN ENERGY AND LIVELIHOOD:
Energy has both direct and indirect impacts on the livelihoods of the poor. Perhaps
surprisingly, there has been little attention to energy within the livelihoods framework,
despite its recognitions as a key aspect of physical capital. The urban poor are largely
dependent on small-scale enterprises for generating income: street food vendors, small-
scale manufacturing and repair services are common. The informal sector forms an
important part of coping strategies particularly for women. But this is not enough. Energy
poverty is related to lack of better living conditions and employment opportunity. Two of
the primary barriers for the poor are access to value-based technology and reliable energy.
The lack of access to electricity prevents the poor from creating sufficient employment
opportunities and enterprises. Decentralized, sustainable energies like solar power, when
effectively linked to livelihoods, can act as a catalyst to empower the poor to create assets

7. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
for themselves. Mapping the needs of the poor at the level where the solutions are
implemented is needed to be carried out. For example, focus on industries directly related
to people's livelihoods (such as agriculture, silk production and the home-based garment
industry) and formulation of technology interventions that have the potential for
integration with renewable energy are required. Project Kowdi also started as an entry
point intervention to explore the potential livelihood avenues with women from the urban
slums. In this regard, an efficient small sewing machine, for example, can run on solar for
home-based tailoring units to make products out of the Kowdi patch works. This will save
time, energy and will be efficient and increase productivity. Therefore, energy in this sense
will help in improving the livelihood opportunities for the urban poor in the slums.
KOWDI PRODUCTS FROM KOWDI KUTUMBA:
Products should be manufactured in a way that it gives maximum satisfaction to the target
customers at reasonable prices. The Kowdi products have been designed in such a way that
the utilitarian value of the products remains intact. Sling Bags, Laptop Covers, I – Pad Bags,
Table Runners, Organizers, Wall Hangings, Pillow Covers, Mobile Pouches, Pencil Pouches,
etc. are some of the products which provide high utility to the target customers at
reasonable prices. A lot of thought has been put into what kind of products need to be
made. And the designers and the entrepreneurs came up with the above mentioned set of
products which are not only utility based and gives customer satisfaction but are cost
effective and generates revenue delivering income to the women of the Kowdi community.
VALUE ADDING CHAINS IN KOWDI:
Identification of market opportunities
Prototype design and development / adaption and refinement
Test marketing

8. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
Upgrading equipping facilities
Securing inputs
Entrepreneurial hiring, training, managing
Production, quality control and packaging
Costing and pricing
Physical distribution
Export market development
ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND MARKET:
Over a period of time that there have been a high demand for both utilitarian and
traditional kowdi craft in the domestic market, but, most of the craftsmen live below the
poverty line because middlemen exploit traditional artisans.
Ms. Vaishali Rao is the new entrepreneur putting in the efforts to set up the small scale
enterprise for the Kowdi products and finding market linkages and setting up market for
the target customers along with designer Mrs. Shahana Ahmed who has been helping us
with the designs of all the products as well as training the women of the slum to make the
patchworks far more better than the first time they had started the work.
The Kowdi craft segment falls into the mid – to – high – end markets and can be sold by
small chains and independent retail stores. From the market research, it has been observed
that, the Kowdi craft targets customers or consumers who can be described as persons

9. A Livelihood Improvement Effort
living in tier 1 or tier 2 city, aged 18 – 40 and fits into the A1 – A2 bracket of the Socio –
Economic Classification System in India.
MARKET COMPETITIONS:
Kowdi Kutumba, a new brand, set up in the year 2014 has identified some competitions in
the market. Following are the two most important competitors which have been thriving in
the business of handicrafts but not necessarily Kowdi -
Large Retail Outlets – Fabindia and Mother Earth:
- Because of its early start, FabIndia was able to get prime mover advantage resulting
in cost advantage.
- Mother Earth is a relatively new set up but progressing at a faster pace.
- Both Fabindia and Mother Earth price their products highly whereas Kowdi
Kutumba prices its products relatively at a lower rate.
- The products of Fabindia and Mother Earth have an enormous range but they are
not specialized in a particular kind of craft whereas Kowdi Kutumba is specializes in
Kowdi craft and produces a range of products within the same segment – Kowdi
sling bags, laptop covers, I-pad bags, mobile pouches, pencil pouches, wall hangings,
table runners, organizers are some examples of Kowdi products.
Machine Made Products:
- Machine made products are another set of competitors as they are relatively cheap
and easily accessible while Kowdi products are meant for specific group of people
and may not be available in bulk everywhere. Therefore, people who are socially
and culturally conscious and demand these traditional products so as to make
difference through the purchase and contribute to the cause become the major
stakeholders of these products.

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CUSTOMERS:
Demographic data
Sl. No Attributes Detail
1. Age 18 - 40
2. Gender Female (85%), Male (15%)
3. Income Middle Income to High Income
4. Profession Service, Business, Students
5. City Type Tier 1 and Tier 2
6. SEC System1 A1 – A2 bracket
Source – Survey conducted by Kowdi Kutumba of customers, potential customers and
shopkeepers across Bangalore.
a. Psychographic data
Sl. No Attributes Detail
1. Socially Conscious Consumers becoming more aware of where
the products come from who makes them
2. Culturally Conscious Craftspeople and processes are an integral
part of our intangible cultural heritage
3. Eco – Friendly Consumers opt for eco-friendly and
sustainable products and Kowdi Kutumba
provides the same.
4. Fashionable Fashion sets us apart from the crowd and
Kowdi Kutumba maintains the fashion
sense.
5. Traditional Kowdi in itself is a traditional craft and
customers opt for traditional products over
western products to show their “Indian -
ness.”
The demographic and psychographic data makes them an ideal target for adoption and
the diffusion of the idea of actively buying traditional Indian crafts. These people have just
the right mix of attitude, purchasing power and status to provide a sizeable domestic
market for Kowdi.
1 Socio – Economic ClassificationsSystems (SEC) is a system created by the Market Research Society of India
(MRSI). Ituses education and occupation data to segment households in India.This is themost commonly used
market segmenting tool in the country.

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MARKET PLAN:
The target audience is driven by their psychographic data. They want craft products to be
socially, culturally and environmentally friendly. They want new and up-to-date designs
and most of all they demand quality. So by highlighting these aspects in our marketing
strategy we can increase domestic market sales.
Branding:
Lots of masses have no idea of what Kowdi actually is. The whole idea of initiating the
Kowdi Craft as a project was to give recognition to this specific traditional craft as well as
to the women in the slums who are involved in this craft. There was a need to make the
masses aware of such craft and the cause behind marketing of the products, therefore, the
brand Kowdi Kutumba was created with a specific logo which established the background
of the craft and the reason for taking up such initiative.
Customers:
As explained earlier, the demographic and the psychographic aspects of customers play
very important role. Demand for socially, culturally and environmentally friendly products
along with their up – to – date designs have increased. Therefore looking into the desired
Marketing
Plan
Promotion
Sales and
Distribution
ProductsBranding
Customers

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behavior of the customers and what they demand is an essential entry point of the
marketing plan of Kowdi products.
Products:
Products should be manufactured in a way that it gives maximum satisfaction to the target
customers at reasonable prices. Sling Bags, Laptop Covers, I – Pad Bags, Table Runners,
Organizers, Wall Hangings, Pillow Covers, Mobile Pouches, Pencil Pouches, etc. are some of
the products with high utility.
Promotion:
It is essentially important to promote the products designed so that the demands for such
products increase and ample amount of sales can generate revenue. In this light, we have
been trying to promote our Kowdi products through exhibitions in platforms like Facebook,
Sunday Soul Santhe, Green Haat and Phoenix Market City - 080. This helps in directly
interacting with the target customers as well as large retail outlet holders interested in
exporting the Kowdi products. Also we are trying to promote our products by distributing
brochures and catalogs for the same to retail outlets and independent organization
interested in keeping stock of our products.
Sales and Distribution:
Sales and Distribution are important phases in marketing. It is important to identify
particular distributors because Kowdi products are such that it takes time to be
manufactured in bulk and the sales of such product requires perfect location or platform to
attract target customers. It is essential to identify distributors in such a way so that they
can reach the target customers as much as possible and sell the products generating
revenue for Kowdi Kutumba. As of now we have identified few exporters who are
interested in exporting the products and retail stores like Cinnamon, Ambara, ANTS Store,
Snapdeal.com, ITShandmade.in, etc. that help in reaching out to the customers within
Bangalore (Bangalore has been considered because of easy accessibility and availability).

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MAJOR DISTRIBUTION CHANNELS THAT CAN HELP GENERATE REVENUE:
Wholesalers:
Besides offering wide range of goods to retailers for direct sales, this channel also supplies
large quantities of individual articles. One of the distinguishing features of wholesalers is to
provide distribution and storage facilities. Specialized wholesalers deal in sales to retailers
as well as to final consumers. They maintain high quality standards and have a narrower
and in-depth range of products.
Importers/distributors:
We can use importers/distributors to market and sell our Kowdi products. They buy and
sell on their own account. Thus, we can take advantage of the distributor's expertise, his
sales force and his existing distribution channels. Distributors call on giftware and
handicrafts retailers, purchasing groups and supermarkets where we can stock our
products. The distributors' mark-up varies depending on the item, but at least 50 percent.
While the mark-ups vary according to the distributor; they usually also depend on the
exclusivity of a product and on its competitiveness in the overall market.
Department Stores:
If we are interested in establishing business contacts with major department stores, mail-
order houses and retailers then we may also choose the direct approach. Department
stores in particular, prefer to deal directly with manufacturers. Their buyers are very
specialized and only handle a limited range of products. At some occasions department
stores also buy through independent commercial agents. Quite often they have their own
buyers as well as a few agents that usually work with them and who know their
assortments. If a department store decides to import a particular item, it places bulk rather
than small orders.
Internet Sales:
It is anticipated that the Kowdi products can be put forth for electronic sales, which are
estimated to reach worldwide. Already today, the Internet is a major sales channel for
Indian market. Therefore, having our own website and putting up our products online for
sale will provide easy access to the buyers and help in the sale of the products.

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Teleshopping:
Introduction of tele-shopping channels that operate all over the country and offer various
types of Kowdi products will also make people aware of the craft work and help in trading
between producers and consumers.
RISK ASSESSMENT:
Setting up such small scale enterprise can also bring with it certain risks. Therefore it is
necessary to assess them and manage it timely.
Sl.
No.
Risk Consequence Preventive
control
Corrective
control
1. Low Sales at
exhibition
Exhibition sales
are the real
motivator for the
women.
Work prior
to exhibition
on pricing
and selecting
appropriate
designs and
styles.
Put a paid
advertisement
in the
newspaper
2. Financial Risk Not enough
funds to cover
basic operation
and organizing
cost
Develop
business
plan
and pitch to
venture
capitalist.
Take a business
loan
3. Cannot Attract
good media
partner
Decreases
visibility
and chance of
less
turn out in
exhibitions
Have pages
on different
social media.
Target
magazines
with same
target group
Increase
marketing
through other
outlets
4. Women not
allowed to
come outside
of the
community
Diminishes the
time and effort
for providing
trainings
Reach out to
them with
minimal
training
facilities
Provide a space
within the
community for
training
5. Unable to find
suitable
partners to
associate with
Expansion of the
enterprise is
neglected.
Meeting the
partners in
persons and
earning trust
Not moving
ahead before
the partners
rely on us.

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SWOT ANALYSIS:
Strength:
1. Abundant and cheap labour from slums,
hence can compete on price
2. Low capital investment and high ratio of
value addition
3. Aesthetic and functional qualities
4. Wrapped in midst of antiquity
5. Hand - made and hence has few
competitors
6. Variety of products which are unique
7. Exporters willing to handle small orders
8. Increasing emphasis on product
development and design up gradation
Weakness:
1. Inconsistent quality
2. Inadequate market study and
marketing strategy
3. Lack of adequate infrastructure and
communication facilities
4. Capacity to handle limited orders
5. Untimely delivery schedule
6. Unawareness of international
standards by many players in the
market
7. Difficulty in finding manufacturer to
manufacture in large quantity.
Opportunity:
1. Rising appreciation for Kowdi
products by consumers domestically
and globally.
2. Widespread novelty seeking
3. Large discretionary income at
disposal of consumer from developed
countries
4. Growth in search made by retail
chains in major importing countries
for suitable products and reliable
suppliers.
5. Opportune for agencies to promote
marketing activities
6. Use of e-commerce in direct
marketing
Threats:
1. Better quality products produced by
competitors.
2. Better terms of trade by competing
producers.
3. Consistent quality and increasing
focus on R&D by competing
producers
4. Better packaging

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FUTURE GROWTH:
As it has been mentioned already that the target customers who would buy the Kowdi
products are elite group of people, it is clear that high end exhibitions and export of such
products is the way to go. Rural people will not be able to buy it because these are not
necessities for them. Urban segments are the target which means these products fall in
luxury as the elite have the taste of such products. Hence, global distribution of the Kowdi
products will enhance the growth of the Kowdi Kutumba and their enterprise as it will
bring in foreign exchange making the products valuable in foreign market too. This will in
turn help in increased income and improved livelihood of the Kowdi Community.
CONCLUSION:
SELCO Foundation has taken up the initiative to improve the livelihood of the women in the
slum of Nagvara Palya and efforts are been made to establish global contacts for export and
exhibitions so as to increase the revenue generated and hence increase in the income of the
women of the slum. The biggest threat to this traditional craft work remains industrial
manufacturers who produce cheap products in volume and can respond to the changing
consumer trends. Small scale enterprises like this can be slower to adapt to the market;
struggle to compete on price points and to meet the production timelines of industrial
manufacturers. Anyhow, the power of this small enterprise of women involved in
producing the Kowdi products to benefit from market action lies in their ability to
participate in markets where they can take advantage of commercial opportunities. The
potential benefits of new international markets have till date had only little impact on
economic growth of the community and they remain amongst the lowest socio-economic
group in the country. Support from organizations and an investment in marketing are
urgently required and should be a priority for our policy makers. Brand building and
investment in marketing can help remove the barriers to economic participation.

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ANNEXURE:
Understanding Market Research
Questions framed to understand the market during exhibition and sale
General Questions:
1. Are there any businesses similar to ours which are currently operating in the
Market?
2. If yes, how are the businesses appear to be doing and what can we do to compete
with those businesses?
3. Is the market for the products we are trying to sell saturated? How competitive is
the market?
4. What kind of people would want to buy the product or are willing to pay for the
service provided by the product? – Making a Customer profile
5. Are there enough of such types of customers who are willing to pay for the products
and services living in our community who will buy such product and support the
business?
Demographic Questions:
1. Which age group buys the product?
2. What gender prefers to buy the product?
3. Dies the product allow the consumers to want to pay for it? Trying to
estimate/predict the income of the consumer.
4. What professions are the customers from?
Psychographic Questions:
1. Asking the consumers/customers about their hobbies, interests, preferences and
opinion about the product, etc. which might help in learning the consumer behavior
more.

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Benefits Questions:
1. What features do the customers look for in the product while purchasing?
2. What specific benefits do the customers look for while buying?
3. What are the needs that they are trying to meet when they are purchasing?
Buying Pattern Question:
1. Who in the family makes the buying decision?
2. How often do the customers purchase the products?
3. What can be the budget for such products/what is the maximum and minimum
amount they are willing to pay for the purchase of the product?