INDIA: Women’s Self-Help Group opens grocery store to increase self-reliance
Defining feature of project is community-based business model
INDIA
(MissionNewswire) The Salesian-run Self-Help Group has opened the Namma Kadai–Women’s Grocery Store, which the women in the group run and manage. The store was opened at Don Bosco Youth Village, located in Tiruchi, a city in Tamil Nadu, India.
The grocery store, created through shared vision and pooled resources, aims to generate income and foster local self-reliance and entrepreneurship. The Self-Help network impacts more than 1,300 women in 94 groups across 35 villages.
Father Ricopar Royan, provincial economer, blessed the shop, and Emily Richard, former mayor of Tiruchirappalli Corporation, formally inaugurated it. In attendance were Self-Help Group leaders, members, local residents and invited guests.
A defining feature of the project is its community-based business model. All 1,300 members pledged to purchase their household groceries at the store, creating a dependable customer base and ensuring the venture’s long-term sustainability. The store, which primarily serves the members’ families, also welcomes the public to expand its market reach and impact in the wider community.
Twelve leaders visited successful retailers and adapted those insights to fit the needs. Members invested in the project, financing it entirely from their own resources. In a display of collective commitment, the women chose to forgo the annual distribution of uniform sarees traditionally provided to all members and instead directed those funds into the venture. They also mobilized additional capital from the network’s collective savings.
A Salesian noted, “The enterprise already provides employment opportunities by appointing four women to manage daily operations, including procurement, sales, bookkeeping and the distribution of grocery items to members. Beyond creating jobs, the initiative reflects a transformative shift in rural women’s roles from beneficiaries of development programs to active entrepreneurs and business owners. The store will distribute profits annually to members, ensuring economic benefits remain in the community and contribute to the welfare of participating families.”
The Self-Help Group’s leaders describe the project as a symbol of ownership, self-reliance and sustainable development. They hope their model will inspire similar community-based enterprises elsewhere.
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Sources:
ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)
Salesian Missions – India
World Bank – India
