The artisanal supply chain is one of the least balanced one amongst a few others. Most of the time artisan groups are informal communities or cooperatives that are managed by a few individuals that are slightly more versed with dealing with foreigners. This means that, unlike formal companies and established factories, most artisans work from home without proper safety equipment, or means to ensure that they are taking healthy breaks, preventing children from “helping out”, not to mention having proper contracts or basic financial security. Today’s case study we take a look at a company that aims to reduce the imparity between brands and artisan groups and how Baba Yaga helped them achieve their desired impact.
🎙: What is the company’s original mission and positioning?
🧙🏻♀️: This Swiss small enterprise aims to build a B2B technology platform that enables global brands to source products more effectively from artisan communities in Asia—primarily in India. The platform categorizes products by traditional craft types and also allows buyers to match with artisans based on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) they wish to support. It centralizes the entire process—from design and sampling to order placement—on one platform. Their mission is to help artisans strengthen their business skills, earn fair and dignified compensation, and gradually build sustainable livelihoods and craftsmanship.
🎙: What is the biggest challenge they face?
🧙🏻♀️: To genuinely help artisan communities achieve self-sufficiency through their craftsmanship, the platform must attract large brands and secure a meaningful volume of orders to support stable livelihoods. However, large brands typically impose high standards in areas such as procurement tendering, management processes, data requirements, and operational capacity, making it difficult for many SMEs to meet these expectations.
Equitable supply chain
An equitable supply chain can only be achieved when the buyer and suppliers are at a level-playing field in the conversation. To facilitate this there are three key starting points:
✅ Suppliers are educated and given information in a way they can understand the needs of the buyers and the implications
✅ Suppliers need to be comfortable in voicing their concerns in unfair conditions without fear of losing the client
✅ Buyers share reasonable risks with the suppliers to give them confidence in implementing ethical and sustainable business practices
🎙: How did BabaYaga support this company?
🧙🏻♀️: We supported the company with a sustainability report that follows GRI standards and in measuring the actual impact of its operations on artisan communities, the supply chain, and society. At the same time, we assisted the company in applying for B Corp certification. Throughout the process, BY worked closely with the company’s team to help build their internal standard operating procedures (SOPs), ensuring that relevant data could be properly captured, organised, and translated into concrete sustainability indicators and disclosures.
🎙: What outcomes did Baba Yaga ultimately deliver for the company?
🧙🏻♀️: The sustainability reporting and data gives the investors strong confidence that the team has solid business practices that are properly governed, transparent, and that they have the know-how to support the artisans in their needed business acumen and professionalism. Further, the B Corp certification is a highly regarded and credible credential that is favoured by many large enterprises. Today, many international companies explicitly require or give priority to B Corp–certified suppliers in their procurement processes. This certification helps the company stand out in competitive tendering situations.