Marketing jewellery for a social cause

I started learning jewellery-making skills to teach some under-priveleged women to empower them. My goal is to make them entrepreneurs.
There are still women who are living in places from where they cannot travel because the infrastructure is bad or a road does not even exist.

So I thought I have to take the training to them. There is no point in training them, if I cannot find a avenue to sell their creations. There are endless training programs and certificates. But what after that?

The reason I am marketing vigorously is to create markets and then train them on jewel making.

I dont want to degrade any creators by telling outside that these sales support a social cause. I feel that people should buy our jewellery because they like it and not because they feel like charity.

When I approach a mall, or some exihibitions I dont even mention it.
Many of my friends suggested that putting the "social cause-women empowerment" will fetch better markets. But somehow I dont feel like it.

Recently we held an exihibition in Bangalore, and there was a fair response.

JJ Jewellery Journey continues...

My journey in exploring jewellery-making continued. After that I made few necklaces and earrings and then showed them to my friends with great trepidations. They all liked it.

One of my friend gave that to her friend's shop and it was sold!
I could not believe it when I heard it.
She told me the piece that you gave was very unique, do something like that.

My interest in jewel making grew, because there were actually people to buy my creativity!

I personally feel, that when your creation gets sold, it truly gives you a feeling of satisfaction, because someone is parting with their money to buy your creation. You have to be serious.

My husband, my son and my sister-in-law all were very encouraging. True to their support they appreciated all my creations:)

But till date I never made jewellery for a commercial purpose. It was for the love of combinations of materials and for the shape that they evolved. This led me to buy raw materials that were expensive.
So this made the end product expensive. But somehow I am reluctant to use raw materials that are common.

But eventually I think I have to...

Learning jewellery jargons in your native language

This is the most funniest part. I learnt basic stringing from a girl from the native part of my state. She told me the names of all the materials generally used in stringing, in my native language.

I learnt that from her and also I surfed the internet for information.
I went to the bead shop and asked for the items in English and he just stared at me. Then I told him the purpose(I totally forgot the native names for those) and he told the name and then gave it to me.

To this date I still use the English names for it.:)