Beware

As we plan to open sales through e-commerce, we are watching many sites for their style of working, why are they so popular, etc. etc. We have learnt from all this study that Indian sellers have a lower reputation than their foreign counterparts. But as we get more inside into this study we see that even reputed international e-market places who have come in India for business are fooling their buyers.

Big names are spending 3,00,00,000/- a day on advertisement through print, television and internet media. But whatever they are advertising is neither real nor unreal. If one terms this as cheating, it may not be said as incorrect.

The advertisement shows a specific watch in the picture, gives its brand’s name too but does not gives its item /design number and says this watch is for 299/- just for today. But when you go to their app or site, the same watch shows for 899/-. However if you search in the site for the brand name, you’ll see the brand also has a watch for 299/-. So, they are neither right nor wrong.

Now we see our Indian site. The title song from the movie Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hinduatani ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmH0BQhH7UA ) aptly describes most of Indians mentality. An Indian e-market store was selling an international brand’s bag for 489/- which turned out to be fake, please underline FAKE, not replica. That brand does not produce that design even. They had just used its name and put up at their site to lure buyers. Many get fooled.

If i take up the non branded garment category selling kurtis, sarees and all, i see that they are much (25% – 65%) cheaper in local markets. I tried to find out the reason and saw that these sites take commission of 20% on this segment. If big players do not keep monopoly, i tell you that mobiles, for which they charge the seller the minimal (2%) are available at 2% – 12% lower locally.

Private sites are not behind e-market sites. A private Indian site selling surgical goods charged 50/- above MRP, and mind it, it was not shipping charge as the price included the shipping. Actually the price on its site was 599/- and the buyer paid the same but when the parcel arrived, the MRP on the box was 549/-.

When contacted, the helpline person told that the new price was 599/- and the product dispatched was either from the old stock or its label might have come off revealing the old price. The company got itself rid from this matter that the customer was not overcharged than the price given on the site.

Closely examining the buyers to these sites show that the age group is 16-28 (around 80%) and 55-75 (around 20%). This shows that the buyers are either immature or are too mature. An immature person will gain experience from trial and error whereas people between 55-75 are having some or the other disability, so they wish to buy from the comfort of their homes. Many of them have weak knees which prevents them to walk 1-2 kms. to buy a product either in the local market or malls. The other thing is that many e-market sites sell versatile products which are not available in malls. Its my experience that i get more varieties of pens that can be found in my entire city on a single stationery site.

Talking to the young generation shows that many of them spend money which they have not earned. Its not saying that all the youth is getting hefty pocket money. The youth which has just joined a good company is paid almost 25 times more than the pocket money he used to BEG his parents. Its also not that the parents were poor, they wished their child to understand the value of money.

Now if the family is well off, the parents don’t ask their child for their salary. It ends up in their pockets which they don’t know where to put it into. Their buried feelings and desires to show their peers that they too can spend on clothes and clubs and all, funds and moves the wheels of country’s economy.

Though 7-30 days return policy is there on almost every site, the young generation rarely use this facility. The returns which are just 2% -4% of the site’s sales can even come down if the product is of some use to this generation. These boys and girls believe in presenting / gifting the goods to their friends on occasions to get rid of them, its seldom that they call or mail these sites for exchange / refund.

When asked on this, a frightening answer was received. This generation prefers to black list the site which sells them goods not up to their expectations on 2 occasions rather than questioning the person on the other side of the helpline. I term this as frightening because its very bad for a site. All their ad campaigns and promotions will go in vain if they have some unsatisfied buyers because word of mouth is still the best form of advertisement in India.

So, be aware buyer.

And beware site owners, your wrong doings will affect all other sites too.

Mijwan Fashion Show 2015

कोई तो सूद चुकाए, कोई तो ज़िम्मा ले
उस इन्किलाब का जो आज तक उधार सा है.
– कैफ़ी आज़मी

The annual Mijwan Fashion Show that showcases Manish Malhotra’s creations and fabrics created by the Mijwan Welfare Society took place in Mumbai and as always saw tons of celebs supporting the cause by walking the runway. Chikan-kari is a dream project that Manish Malhotra has nurtured giving a platform to Mijwan women to showcase their work.

Mijwan Welfare Society is an NGO founded by the late poet Kaifi Aazmi and it works for the empowerment of the villagers of Mijwan, a village in Azamgarh UP where he was born. His initiative has been further carried out by his daughter Shabana Azmi.

KRISHNA thanks and salutes each and all who takes such initiatives. KRISHNA also understands that only big names can give bigger audience and applause for Chikan-kari which is long overdue.

RAPE – another reason

Every other day i feel disgraced as well as fed up of news of rapes in India, especially the northern region. It may also be that i live here so i get more news of this region of my country.

As far as my reading takes me to on this issue, it shows that the main reason is lack of harnessing the young energy.

Just 10-12 years back, a farmer’s son, as soon as he reached his age where his energies started rising in puberty, the farmer used to send him to the farms and used 80% of his strength to gain the most from the soil. When this young chap used to return, food used to be his first priority.

As i have already written in my post of 22nd Sep, ’13’s ( https://krishnachikan.wordpress.com/2013/09/22/chikankari-in-the-new-scenario/ ) fourth & fifth paragraph –  “The current government has not only brought MGNREGA, it also brought the NFSB . These policies of the present government will not only make these village people lazy but idle and useless eventualy creating negative minds….these people know that there is big money for their children if they learn computers or other jobs which can monetarily take them to higher levels of living“, I am seeing this happening now on maximum young minds.

Farmers in India are usually not very well stable (economically), their young generations find more money in cities with lesser hard work. Cities need them too as they are cheaper, less corrupted and hard working. But adjustment to city life for these young villagers is not very fast.

They see many people will big-big cars, big-big bunglows, clubs, parties, drinks, drugs, corruption and also girls in short-short dresses. Their energies are in wraps till here, until they taste alcohol. I tell you all here that consumption of alcohol is neither promoted nor accepted in villages. People do drink there but the percentage is less and those who drink don’t get that respect in the society, they are looked upon as people of low cultural & moral values.

But here in cities, it has become a culture to have a peg or two before getting into our homes. Its termed as socializing. When these drivers, maalis, guards start so called socializing, the devil in them breaks loose.

Another kind of rapist is a cab driver who has a lot of spare time. Most of their time goes in the waiting. These possible rapist are on their mobile phones in this period. If they are listening to music, its good, but if they are watching something on their phones, it may possibly be porn. Porn is easily available at very very cheap price, sometimes you don’t even have to shell out a buck, you bluetooth it, whatapp it from your circle of co-workers or friends. I can say this as i have personally seen 90% teenagers with smartphones having 10-90 percent space used up in pornography. This can also be termed as a good example of misuse of technology.

A youngster from the same city will always be afraid to commit a crime as rape as he knows the whole of his family will be ashamed of his act, he & his family has to stay here, leave aside his ancestral respect. Also that he has grown up watching all this. But when a villager’s simple & noble son sees porn and is under the influence of alcohol, it changes him altogether has very little brain power, he will only come to his senses when the damage has already been done and to hide that damage he will eventually wish to wipe out the clues by killing the victim.

I feel very sad as i again mention that most of these cab drivers are hired by reputed cab / taxi brands without checking their background. Sadly the police department has become really so corrupt that it can issue a good character certificate, which is sometimes an essential paper for applying as a cab driver, to a person without proper check.

The bottom line, according to my knowledge, parents must see where their children minds are moving, police (if it really wants to make a change) must ensure that good character certificates are issued after due check ups and be vigilant, governments must ensure that village people don’t have to come to the cities, see that they are empowered enough to be there and make this agricultural land more efficient adding strength to the slogan “JAI KISAAN” without making them idle & lazy. People in cities must open all to these helpers after some time till they have understood and adapted to city culture.

“Why this dress so expensive looks very simple” – a question posted by an online client

The dress is expensive for those who consider this as a garment. Actually Chikan (or Chikankari, which is its full name) is an art. As you well know that art is priceless, the price lies in the eyes of the person who sees it in his / her capacity.
You see, I see many paintings from world renowned painters but am unable to understand why they are for 3cr or 5cr .
Now regarding the product :
The material used is pure silk georgette imported from Italy. The Indian or Arabian georgettes, when dyed, do not display the bright shade as in the sample, they’re somewhat dull. Also they are heavier.
Secondly, The embroidery is the top-most which you can get in Lucknow. There are only 5-8 people like KRISHNA who attempt and sell (I say here attempt & sell because the people who make much better than us do it to satisfy their souls, their products generally do not sell or sell so slowly that they stop the attempt to make more). There are manufacturers who are just worried for sales so they compromise with the quality & workmanship by employing child labour and artisans who are in the learning period. Keeping in mind the customers’ budget, they compromise with fabric quality also.
The 5-8 manufacturers like KRISHNA are gifted by God for niche customers like yourself where we have just one aim in mind – to take it ( Chikankari) to the highest level possible.
I thank you for your question because if I was able to satisfy you, I know that I have made one more lover of Chikankari.
Thanks once again for your question.

Hurdles in Chikan-kari Online Sales

I feel very pleased that many people have have contributed to Chikan-kaari, be it writers who write blogs on Chikan-kari stitches (believe me, they are very much better to me in terms of illustrations), additional information providers who write comments on thier blogs and over and above all the buyers.

This was a question posted to me by one of my friends from Kolkata who visited us just yesterday – ” WHY DOES YOUR SITE NOT HAVE ALL THE DESIGNS & PRODUCTS YOU HAVE IN YOUR PHYSICAL STORE.” I wished to answer this here on wordpress.com as it has become a question that most of my friends have in their minds and question me in some or the other ways.

Of 85% of the companies that are mentioned when i searched for Chikan-kari in Lucknow do not operate from Lucknow and are online stores who take limited cotton stuff from Lucknow and have limited stock.

Its not wrong if I’d add that ANY website selling Chikan stuff will NEVER EVER be able to stuff its website. Those who are solely dependent on online sales can post their full store, but internet driven sales mainly of Chikan goods is so less that (she or) he’ll wind it up in a year or lately by the next year of opening the site

People who have a store & wish to increase their sales, try to become online. They wish their site to be like another high-end designers’ but are not able to reach there as the profit margin in Chikan is very less as compared to other ready-to-wear brands, so they end up creating a OK type website.

Then comes the photographs (main content). I tell you by my own experience that modelling and model shoot prices are very high in Lucknow. Also that the models here are not as professional as you get in Mumbai or at least Delhi. Even the best placed & clicked in the studio atmosphere are not as detailed which can prompt a buyer to make the purchase. I mean to say that they are very small (they have to be kept small because large pics take time in loading at buyers’ end and use up lot of space on the site).

The website designers are also not very creative. You give them a website you like and they can copy it. There is no personal talent in almost all web designers of Lucknow. Also because you have less professional web designers, their cost is also 150-200% more than designers of Delhi / Mumbai. The recent scene is changing though.

Then comes the sale. Again, as i have told you earlier, that online Chikan sales are no where when you compare it with other ready made garments and not even 0.5% of any normal mobile phone’s online sales. The products that you see on Lucknowi sites marked as SOLD may have been sold out from the physical store of the website rather than been sold online.

Many websites you can see who have not been updated since 2 years and there’s a reason for it too. Chikan, being hand made, has a uniqueness in every piece. No two pieces are almost ever the same. Its painstaking process to 1)Fit the piece (on a model or mannequin), 2)Click the pic  3)Photoshop it 4)Load on the website and if in the process, the piece gets sold, the whole exercise gets wasted. Its not like you click one image of a certain pressure cooker or a camera or even a machine made apparel where you have tons of the same pieces in the back hand.

Like other Indians, Chikan walas are also very energetic and laborious. The main tonic for us Chikan walas, as i’ve earlier quoted, is sales. This tonic gives us the energy to go on and on.

The main question – ” WHY DOES YOUR SITE NOT HAVE ALL THE DESIGNS & PRODUCTS YOU HAVE IN YOUR PHYSICAL STORE.” , must also not fade away in all this.

A general customer visiting a good Chikan store, wishes to wade through atleast 20-30 pieces in the category she desires. I give my example, we open atleast 300 pieces a day at just one store. So, its not possible to post, say 2000 pieces a week on the site.

The best option (though i sell online) is visiting your preferred store by yourself. The utmost satisfaction is only there. Its like a thirsty person going to the well. Your thirst cannot be quenched by just watching the picture of water online.

Its my own experience that customers come to me, they click pics and send to their dear ones by whatsapp. I tell you, their beauty can never be judged by a picture unless you are a regular re-seller. Whatsapp has helped me a lot monetarily when i am in contact with my regular buyers. I know their taste, they understand my work. My retail buyers have added to just 3-4% of Whatsapp sales.

The scenario is changing, it seems to me that maybe my post will become obsolete in the near future.
HAPPY SHOPPING

Lucknow Times’ (advertorial edition of Times of India newspaper) 19th Anniversary edition (Thu.25 Sep.’14)

I re-post today Lucknow Times’ (advertorial edition of Times of India newspaper) 19th Anniversary edition (Thu.25 Sep.’14)which carried article on Kings of Chikan-kari – Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla for the benefit of my followers residing out of Lucknow.
Abu & Sandeep started their journey of Chikan-kari magic in 1993, which may have become very easy for us nowadays due to the efforts of people like them, but was really a very hectic task for them to pursue and assure the artisans to embroider on pure fabrics like delicate cotton mul, silks, chiffons and organza.
They share that when they were opened the doors by a printer in Chowk area to the wooden blocks which were old and largely unused (wooden blocks, as shown in the pictures below, are used in printing temporary designs on a fabric to be embroidered), they felt excited like small boys who were given the keys of a toys shop.
“We must honour & reward a skill if we want to keep it alive for future generations.”Their creation of a sense of respect and good remuneration to the artisans filled them with a sense of achievement as pieces began taking final shape, they didn’t feel like labour anymore. They understood that they were
artists capable of creating work of art.
Rest is history as we all know it. Their pieces are worn as couture. It is because of thier labor that a bride aspires to wear a Chikan Lehnga at her wedding, Chikan is now not merely like a kurta to office. After all these years they still are enthustiastic to take Chikan much further and make it as renowned as French lace in every corner of the world.

WOODEN BLOCKS

WOODEN BLOCKS BEING SOAKED IN TEMPORARY INK

WOODEN BLOCKS SOAKED IN TEMPORARY INK BEING PRINTED ON FABRIC

PRINTED FABRIC IS NOW READY FOR EMBROIDERY

FINE JAALI WORK BEING ADDED TO PRINTED AND EMBROIDERED CLOTH

All images have been sourced through the internet

Difference Between – Lacha / Lehnga & Sharara / Garara

Dear Friends i wish to share a piece of information that i received from a seeker.

She came to our store inquiring about Sharara. i had no clue. As a good salesman i tried to prove uselessly that a Lehnga was a Sharara, but this could not move her. It was coming on my face that i was lying to her because when you don’t have that information and you are striking in the dark it shows on your face that you yourself are not 100%.

Again, as a good salesman, i told her if she gets what she wanted, she will show it to me. Its a learning from your mistake that my master had conveyed me when i was new in this trade.

She did not get a Chikan Sharara in the market but the information she got was from a store selling ethnic bridal stuff for women. She drew it on paper and taught me the difference. Later we sold her an unstitched Lehnga piece which she could make to a Sharara.

For the information of my followers i searched the internet for the pics, and there are so many.

The sharara and the gharara are lower garments that are like flared pants. It was a fashion of 18th and 19th century in undivided India, particularly Northern India. Some of these dresses can be seen in block buster Bollywood movies of 1960s, 1970s & 1980s that had a North Indian milieu. Now they seem to be part of contemporary wedding ensembles in mainly the Muslim community.

The sharara was the bifurcated version that fell straight and looked liked a skirt

while the gharara was fitted till somewhere above the knee (or has a band sort of thing) and then flared

Now about Lehngas & Lachas

A lehenga is paired with a choli which is supposed to be a small blouse like thing which reveals the stomach & the back,

whereas, a lacha has got a relatively longer blouse which not only covers the entire stomach & back

but is also sometimes a little below the hips, as can be seen in its new avtaar, melange`.

All images have been sourced through the internet

Quite Funny…..err,…..Maybe Right

My search for literature from my fellow hand made lovers brought me here

At first i thought it to be funny, then i felt the pain of the buyer, how irritated & disgusted she might have felt when she opened the parcel, but finally i also understood the pain of the maker

So at first what was thinking as funny ended up me thinking she (the artist) was right

The Future of Handmade is in our hands

Dear Friends,

I accidentally came across an image on the internet which i wish to share

This image shook my mind. This is what can happen without the support of you, friends of our industry.

I extend my gratitude and feel greatly obliged towards you all.

Keep promoting Chikan-kari.

i Thank You all one again

A society without business people is a dead society

One of my cousins who is also a normal businessman, was very keen on admission of his child in a reputed school in the preparatory class. This is the first class in which a child gets admitted to that concerned school.
There are 3-4 reputed schools in my city. Every parent who has slightest of repute or money in his / her pockets wants his / her child to get admitted in these schools. So the competition is very hard. If all those 3-4 school seats are combined, it will add to approximately 1,000 – 1,200 seats and the forms which are distributed are around 40,000. There are 80,000 parents waiting just to get these 40,000 forms.

These 40,000 parents who are lucky enough to get these forms start day dreaming that their son / daughter is admitted to the concerned school. They should be. Every son / daughter is the best amongst others in the eyes of a parent.
These aforesaid schools publish 2 lists of parents with their son / daughter for one on one meeting with the Principal or the office bearer concerned. Parents wait for their names in these lists. Lucky ones get to meet the Principal.

Thenafter 4 lists are displayed one by one in intervals of 7-10 days, 12-15days and finally after day 30 from the date of the 1st list.

This has to be done. The 1st list contains names of really talented boys / girls. When bigger personalities like the I.A.S. and other higher level people of the governments, emminent doctors and other eminent personalities put pressure that their sons / daughters must be selected, the 2nd list is put up on the notice board of the school.

The 3rd list comes out if the school still has vacancy (though it is always commented that ‘we are done’ even after the 1st list).

The 4th list comprises of names of sons / daughters of business people who can pay well as donations to the school. This way no one can blame the school that they do not entertain businessmen while also sucking funds from them.

If i look at schools’ side, they too are not wrong, they cannot be blamed much.

It is human nature. i give you an example. i had to pay Rs.20/- to a rickshaw wallah. i had 3 notes of Rs.20/-. i gave the more soiled note to the rickshaw wallah. The other 2 were also not new but were better than the one i gave him. i progressed and bought something for Rs.30/-, the better looking notes were also spent in just 2-3 minutes i spent the first note. Same is with the school authorities. They have a power of choice. They can select the best for their school when they have so much open options.

Look to the classifieds in the newspapers, you’ll find in the to-let column ‘only bank employees or MNCs or people with transferable jobs’ which analysed says ‘no businessman’. If you do not agree with me, call them up and they will surely say to you clearly and openly – no businessmen.

This can be compared to Muslim film stars not getting properties in posh areas where Hindus and people of other religion reside.

Are we untouchables. No. No because all these so called dhanna seths of the society come to us for availing our services or products. Many deposit their money with us as investment as they know we are better in this field than them.

A businessman, all his life has to pay, pay and pay to get what he wants. His wanting comprises of fame through charities to religious buildings such as mandirs / ashrams or mazjids, etc. and / or functions such as satsangs and bhandaras and / or charities to various hospitals to name a few.

While in the process of earning more & more to meet these investments / expenses, some of my business community friends forget the judicial permissible line to do business and get to the hand of the judicial system. Here too, as in many cases from history, pays and gets released.

The whole government and its machinery is dependent on us for progress.

Seeing this step motherly treatment from the society many of my friends, i see, are keeping their business as an option for their children closed. They want them to study and become people whose child gets instant admission, can get a house on rent when he wants, does not cross the judicial line for earning, etc. etc.

Seeing a society without businessmen creates a dead vision. We are part of this society, we have a major role in the economy, we play a major part in the lives of each and every person around us. We are the ones who contribute generously to religious activities.

One cannot see life without us as do we without others.

तुम ही तुम हो , तो क्या तुम हो ?
हमी हम हैं, तो क्या हम हैं ?