Dear Friends of Sari Bari
The sky is blue and the sun is brightly lighting up the city with energy and warmth.
We have already welcomed the heat of summer here in Kolkata with temps soaring over 100 in these last days of March. We are perched under the powerful fans that you can only find in India and are continuing to make some pretty beautiful stuff in spite of the heat!
The last years have been hard times for many in the States and for some time we were shielded here in India. However, in the past year we have seen an exponential rise in prices not only in the material goods that we use for production but in the basic costs of living, from rent to rice. India is currently at 16% inflation with the prices on basic food and necessities rising exponentially in the last year. The value of the Indian Rupee has fallen and it is just not stretching as far as it did two years ago.
At Sari Bari we have seen this raise in prices deeply affect our women and their ability to stretch the income they make at Sari Bari to cover their expenses. So this year we are offering all the women of Sari Bari a healthy raise in a desire to better support the women and their families. Because of this, we will be raising prices on Sari Bari Products to support these raises and to cover the increasing costs of goods and services that we need to run the business of Sari Bari.
As of April 1, 2012, you will see a price difference in many of the items at www.saribari.com. We will continue to introduce new items for you to enjoy and a number of new lower priced items so the opportunity to share in the freedom stories at Sari Bari remains open to everyone.
We apologize for the Sari Bari websites empty pages in February and March. We have been facing some production challenges that now seem to be working themselves out. And we are hopeful that raises, newly introduced Artisan Producer Forums (where the women can be heard and make decisions about how Sari Bari is run), and a more intense focus on aftercare and mental health support will positively affect the overall outlook for the Sari Bari Community from personal mental health to production.
We are so thankful for your continued support of the cause of Freedom for the women at Sari Bari through your purchasing power. You have a choice and we are thankful that you have chosen us at Sari Bari.
For all of us at Sari Bari,
Sarah Lance, Managing Director