India's craft economy: scale, significance, and the digitisation gap

India's handicrafts and handloom sector is among the country's largest unorganised employers. The Fourth All India Handloom Census (2019–20) records approximately 3.14 million handloom worker households across the country, with significant concentrations in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Manipur, and Uttar Pradesh. Over 72% of the handloom workforce is composed of women.

The handicrafts sector, covering metalwork, terracotta, woodcraft, ceramics, embroidery, painting traditions, and regional craft forms, employs an estimated 7 million artisans, making it the second-largest employment-generating sector in India after agriculture.

Together, the two sectors form the backbone of India's rural non-farm economy. They also carry cultural and regional identities that no other sector replaces - Bhadohi carpets, Kanchipuram silk, Channapatna toys, Moradabad brass, Aranmula Kannadi, and hundreds of craft traditions tied to specific districts and communities.

But scale has not translated into economic security. The Handloom Census and subsequent Ministry of Textiles reporting have consistently documented low household earnings, irregular demand, and persistent dependence on intermediaries for most weaver and artisan households. Reporting in The Hindu, The Indian Express, and Mint has tracked the same pattern across clusters in Varanasi, Kanchipuram, and the Northeast - skilled work that struggles to be economically viable.

The result is a sector where the craft is respected, but the work is often not sustainable across generations. Younger family members move to other occupations, and traditional skills thin out not because they fail, but because the markets around them have not kept pace.

What is slowing the sector down?

There is a profound irony in India’s rural heartlands: a master artisan can spend weeks perfecting a hand-carved brass vase or a silk saree, yet remain completely invisible to a consumer just a few hundred kilometers away. While the global economy moves toward borderless, instant commerce, many of India’s artisans and weavers remain anchored to local fairs and ageing supply chains. To bridge this gap, we must first address the specific points of friction that keep this masterfully skilled workforce in a cycle of economic vulnerability.

Four systemic barriers consistently hinder the sector’s growth:

• Limited market access. Most artisans and weavers sell through local fairs, exhibitions, tourist demand, or complex intermediary networks that significantly reduce the artisan's take-home earnings.
• Low digital readiness. First-time digital sellers face barriers around registration, cataloguing, product imagery, digital payments, and platform navigation, often compounded by language and literacy constraints.
• Logistics constraints. Even when demand exists, shipping from a remote cluster to a customer in another state is expensive and unreliable without institutional logistics support
• Informality and limited access to credit. Most artisans operate without GST registration, business bank accounts, or MSME credentials, which keeps them outside the formal financial system and the government schemes designed to support them.

The policy context: India's push to digitise the craft economy

India's craft economy is being reshaped by a unified government vision aimed at turning heritage into a source of modern economic power. This movement, rooted in the Vocal for Local spirit, has received a massive boost in the Union Budget 2026-27 with the introduction of the ‘National Handloom and Handicraft Programme.’

Central to this shift is the concept of ‘Virasat se Vikas’ (Development through Heritage). This movement is already witnessing a massive transformation at the grassroots, evidenced by 2.72 crore applications for the PM Vishwakarma scheme. Under this program, artisans are empowered with:

• ₹15,000 toolkit grants to modernise their traditional crafts.
• Collateral-free loans of up to ₹3 lakh to scale their workshops for the modern Indian market.

Strategic National Programs:

• The One District One Product (ODOP) initiative, launched by the Government of Uttar Pradesh in 2018 and subsequently adopted nationally under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, identifies a signature product for each district, providing branding, market access, and skilling support.
• The PM Vishwakarma Scheme, launched by the Ministry of MSME in September 2023, provides artisans across 18 traditional trades with skilling, toolkits, collateral-free credit, and incentives for digital transactions.
• The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a Ministry of Commerce and Industry initiative, has been positioned as a platform for bringing small sellers, artisans, and craft-led businesses into digital commerce at scale.

State-Level Innovation and Digital Presence:

State governments have added their own layers to this digital architecture. Uttar Pradesh has operationalised ODOP through intensive district-level branding and e-commerce partnerships. Kerala has pioneered a model that combines craft preservation with women's enterprise development through the Kerala Arts & Crafts Village (KACV) and the Kerala State Women's Development Corporation. The Northeast operates a dedicated development corporation - NEHHDC, which bridges the logistics gap for remote Himalayan and forest clusters.

In 2026, this momentum has accelerated. Andhra Pradesh is launching a dedicated online portal for Lepakshi Handicrafts to reduce dependency on third-party platforms and ensure 5,000+ artisan partners receive better margins. Similarly, Odisha's Boyanika has expanded its digital reach through specialised 2025 initiatives like ‘Night Bazaars’ and digital empowerment drives aimed at preserving the state's rich handloom heritage.

The Multi-Layered Support Ecosystem:

The transition to a digital craft economy is supported by a lifecycle approach that addresses identity, production, and market linkage:

• Identity & Security (Pehchan & e-Shram): These initiatives provide over 30 lakh artisans with a formal digital identity and access to social security, turning "unorganised" work into a recognised profession.
• Cluster-Based Production (SFURTI & PM Vishwakarma): By providing modern machinery and funding for "Common Facility Centers," the government enables remote clusters to achieve the scale and quality required for national e-commerce.
• Institutional Market Access (The Saras Collection - GeM): This enables rural Self-Help Groups (SHGs) to list products for direct procurement by government departments, creating a reliable B2G (Business-to-Government) revenue stream.
• Direct-to-Consumer Digital Storefronts (IndiaHandmade.com): A Ministry of Textiles-led, zero-commission marketplace that acts as an official digital home for authentic Indian crafts.

Flipkart's seller-enablement portfolio: where Samarth fits

Flipkart runs a portfolio of programmes designed to bring different kinds of sellers onto the platform and help them grow. Flipkart Samarth is the programme within this portfolio dedicated to sellers from underserved communities - artisans, weavers, self-help groups, women entrepreneurs, persons with disabilities, and government emporiums. Samarth was built on the realisation that traditional onboarding is not a 'one-size-fits-all' solution. These communities require a bespoke entry point into the digital economy to solve specific barriers like language, digital literacy, cataloguing, imagery, inventory management, and logistics from remote clusters.

As of the most recent Flipkart disclosures, Samarth has impacted over 1.9 million livelihoods across India.

What Flipkart Samarth provides

Samarth's seller-enablement tools are designed to close the gaps that keep artisans and weavers out of digital commerce.

• Simplified onboarding. Lower documentation barriers, vernacular support, and hand-holding through KYC, seller registration, and first-listing processes for first-time digital sellers.
• Dedicated account management. Samarth sellers are assigned account managers who assist with pricing, cataloguing, inventory planning, and platform navigation.
• Professional cataloguing and imagery. Product photography and listing optimisation so that craft products compete visually with established categories.
• Training and seller workshops. Regular programmes covering platform usage, customer service, returns management, and business growth.
• Dedicated visibility. Through the Samarth Store - a dedicated storefront on Flipkart - and amplified placement during The Big Billion Days, National Handloom Day, and World Artisan Day.
• Logistics access. Samarth sellers plug into Flipkart's supply chain - more than 100 fulfilment centres and delivery across over 95% of serviceable pincodes in India.
• Seller-friendly commercials. Commission structures designed to make online selling economically viable for small, craft-led businesses.

How Samarth addresses each sector challenge

Challenge 1: Limited market access

Samarth's primary intervention is geographic: it replaces a local or regional buyer base with a national one. Sellers in small towns and craft clusters gain access to customers in more than 95% of serviceable pincodes across India through Flipkart.

• Case study - Shree Nagnechi Arts, Jodhpur. Founded by Dhirender Singh around Jodhpur's metal and iron craft tradition, the business now serves customers in every state in India through Flipkart. It has expanded to involve local iron artisans and women finishers responsible for painting and detail work.

Challenge 2: Low digital readiness

Samarth's onboarding and account management layers work directly with first-time digital sellers, handling the steps - registration, cataloguing, imagery, pricing - where most artisans would otherwise drop off.

• Case study - Handicrafy, Jodhpur. Built around traditional Jodhpur metal craftsmanship, Handicrafy was created with an explicit decision that artisan identity should travel with the product rather than be lost in intermediary chains. Samarth's onboarding and cataloguing support helped convert a small online experiment into a business with a national customer base.

Challenge 3: Logistics from remote clusters

For fragile, heavy, or low-margin craft products, shipping economics often determine whether a business is viable at all. Samarth sellers access Flipkart's over 100 fulfilment centre network, which absorbs much of the complexity and cost of national delivery.

• Case study - GW Creations, New Delhi. Selling marble religious idols and figurines - a category where weight and fragility make shipping particularly difficult for small sellers - GW Creations used Flipkart's logistics infrastructure to scale nationally.

Challenge 4: Structural Informality

Digital formalisation is perhaps the most transformative shift Samarth facilitates. By establishing a digital sales record, artisans transition from the informal shadows into the formal economic system - unlocking access to critical government social security and institutional support.

• Case studies - women-led enterprises. Yasmin Adil built a chikankari embroidery brand on Flipkart that now supports more than 50 women artisans. Shivali Verma's jewellery and home décor business works with over 500 artisans. Both demonstrate the way formalised online selling, combined with Samarth's support, allows women entrepreneurs to build scale while extending livelihoods to other women in their communities.

Government partnerships and on-ground efforts: extending Samarth into communities

Platform access solves part of the problem. Reaching the communities that most need support requires working through the institutions that already represent them.

Some of the key government and institutional partnerships:

• Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) – DAY-NRLM: This partnership focuses on the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission, bringing millions of women from rural Self-Help Groups (SHGs) across India into the e-commerce fold.
• One District One Product (ODOP), Government of Uttar Pradesh: Bringing district-signature products - including Bhadohi carpets, Moradabad brassware, Varanasi handlooms, and Bulandshahr pottery - onto Flipkart with dedicated branding.
• NEHHDC - North Eastern Handicrafts & Handloom Development Corporation: A Government of India undertaking that partners with Flipkart to bring handloom and handicraft businesses from the Northeast onto Samarth.
• Kerala Arts & Crafts Village (KACV) and KSWDC (Early 2026): Flipkart Samarth partnered with KACV and the Kerala Department of Women and Child Development to run onboarding workshops for artisans. Over 100 artisans in traditional Kerala crafts - Aranmula Kannadi, Nettor craft, and mural arts - and over 160 women entrepreneurs were onboarded.
• Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED): A collaboration aimed at promoting authentic tribal products, from traditional Gond and Warli art to organic forest produce.
• Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD): An initiative under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment to provide 'Divyangjan' (entrepreneurs with disabilities).
• National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC): A strategic partnership that focuses on facilitating market access and enhancing the digital footprint of micro and small enterprises (MSEs) across India’s industrial clusters.
• Gujarat State Handloom & Handicrafts Development Corporation (GSHHDC): Working to digitise and promote the "Garvi Gurjari" brand, bringing Kutch embroidery and Rogan art to customers nationwide.
• DAY-NULM - Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Urban Livelihoods Mission: A partnership spanning 25 states, bringing urban artisans and SHG-linked producers onto the platform.

On-ground workshops and training

Alongside these partnerships, Flipkart runs on-ground workshops that form the grassroots layer of Samarth. These sessions provide hands-on training in product photography, cataloguing, and inventory management. Recent and ongoing efforts include:

• Kerala (February 2026): In collaboration with the Kerala Arts & Crafts Village (KACV) and the Department of Women and Child Development, Flipkart organised specialised onboarding workshops in Kovalam. These sessions empowered traditional craftspeople and women entrepreneurs in sectors like mural arts and handloom to transition to the digital economy.
• Chhattisgarh (October 2025): A state-wide drive in collaboration with the Chhattisgarh Government targeted women-led Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in districts like Balod and Durg. The workshops focused on converting local handicraft and spice businesses into digital brands, providing training on pricing strategies and customer feedback loops.
• Assam (January 2025): A dedicated orientation workshop held in Guwahati in partnership with the Assam Project on Forests & Biodiversity Conservation (APFBC). This initiative focused specifically on forest communities and cluster-level federations, teaching bamboo and wooden product makers how to leverage PAN-India market access.
• National Seller Summit Series (2025): A three-city on-ground engagement across Surat, Jaipur, and Delhi that reached over 8,000 sellers and MSMEs. These summits provided "festive-readiness" training, offering data-backed insights into consumer demand and keyword optimisation for small businesses ahead of The Big Billion Days.
• Tier-2 & Tier-3 Cluster Drives (August 2025): Preceding the 10th edition of Crafted by Bharat, Flipkart conducted localised onboarding drives in clusters including Bhadohi (Carpets), Kannauj (Perfumes), and Madurai (Textiles), bringing over 100 new artisanal sellers onto the platform in a single cycle.

Crafted by Bharat: Samarth's flagship sale moment

Crafted by Bharat is more than a sale; it is the annual heartbeat of the Vocal for Local movement, connecting conscious Indian consumers with the soul of indigenous craftsmanship.

The most recent edition featured:

• Over 2,300 participants - artisans, weavers, NGOs, SHGs, emporiums, and women entrepreneurs.
• 1.8 lakh unique handicraft products listed.
• Over 200 traditional art forms represented.
• 300-plus new sellers onboarded ahead of the event.

The broader picture

India's craft economy is too large and too economically significant to be treated only as heritage. Flipkart Samarth is one part of that larger system. It is not the whole answer - government schemes, state initiatives, and civil society all contribute - but it provides a vital private-sector framework that aligns with and amplifies national goals. Through platform access at a national scale and partnerships with the government bodies that represent these communities, Samarth helps ensure that Indian craft is not only remembered - it is carried forward as a working, thriving part of the country's economy.