Handicrafts are usually made from locally

Handicrafts sourced materials such as wood, leather, clay,

stone, plant and animal fibres, metal, and some-
Handicrafts are an integral asset of any coun- times rare materials acquired through trading
tries’ tangible cultural heritage. Handicrafts, ties (Scott, 2015). Phulkari is the folk embroi-
with their roots in rural crafts, have been dery of the states of Punjab and Haryana, India,
practised for hundreds, sometimes thousands with intricate designs created with horizontal
of years. The Murano glass-making industry and vertical threads. Carvings, leatherwork, tex-
in Venice, Italy, is one such example that has tiles, ceramics and metalworks are examples of
maintained its vitality. In comparison, other handicrafts (Cohen, 1993). Marrakech’s leather
crafts are recent inventions or popularizations tanneries in Fes, Morocco date back to the 11th
of older handicrafts that have only been prac- century, sustaining tradition in an ever-evolving
tised within a limited geographical area. Even world. Handicrafts are often referred to inter-
though the entire Sualkuchi weaving cluster in changeably as folk art, crafts, artefacts, ethnic
Assam, India has been devoted to handlooms, arts and tourist arts (Scott, 2015). Gujarat’s
the village itself is famous worldwide due to its Kutch region in India is known for its vibrant
hand-woven, golden-coloured Muga silk. Like handicrafts, including textiles, embroidery, the
other arts, handicrafts have local historical, cul- Rogan art of cloth printing (pictured), wood-
tural or religious significance and often carry a carving, metalwork, cast silverwork, lacquer
political statement, as in the case of the craftiv- work and pottery.
ism movement, a form of activism centred on Handicrafts in developing nations have
the practice of craft. Origami, the art of paper become popular for tourism purposes (Cohen,
folding, has had a strong tradition in Japan, 1993). Local handicrafts not only preserve a
is still practised today and is of cultural sig- community’s history but also offer value to
nificance in Japanese society. Artisans produce tourist experiences. For example, Kathputli, a
handicrafts to add their own values, philosophy string puppet theatre native to Rajasthan, India,
of life and self-image to the community’s cul- is one of the most popular performing arts. No
tural legacy through ideas, forms, materials and village fair or religious festival is complete
ways of working. without the Kathputlis, intricately made from
The World Crafts Council (WCC), affiliated wood, cloth and wire and beautifully dressed.
with the United Nations Educational, Scientific Moreover, as part of the local culture, handi-
and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), was crafts have a part to play in both attracting
created in 1964 to foster economic growth, tourists and helping promote the local economy
promote artisanship worldwide, and exchange (Vijayagopalan, 1993). Because of this, gov-
ideas. Craftworks are cultural products, crafts ernments are providing national tourism facili-
and arts produced in small quantities using ties in places where handicrafts are produced
simple implements operated directly by the in large quantities. Some countries strive to
craftsperson, by hand or foot, with traditional differentiate themselves by introducing new
or artistic features derived from the craftsper- products that blend their nation’s symbolism
son’s geographical and cultural peculiarities on with their traditional handicrafts. The recipro-
a small industry basis (Zargham, 2007). For cal relationship between handicraft growth and
example, ikebana, the Japanese art of arrang- tourism development justifies government and
ing flowers, involves cutting stems and plac- non-government funding for local handicraft
ing flowers in a vase to symbolize the unity development. Such an approach is focused on
of nature and people. The art of ikebana is generating economic income and preserving
minimalist and precise and adheres to a strict and revitalizing the local community’s tradi-
set of rules, and practitioners maintain silence tional culture. Moreover, the handicraft enter-
while working, allowing them to pay attention prise does not require a large capital investment
to nature. Handicrafts such as this evolved and enables women and other underprivileged
from the use of ordinary household objects groups to easily participate in the informal
that were adorned and used for ceremonial handicraft sector and earn a living wage. Timor-
purposes. Handicrafts are typically produced Leste is one example of the government making
by individuals, families, small workshops, or, attempts to create and promote cultural tourism
on rare occasions, entire towns specializing in at the local community level through handicraft
a particular craft. development.

Priya Chaturvedi and Aditya Ranjan

 handicrafts 51

Source: Wikipedia Creative Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rogan-art-Tree-of-Life-Abdul-Gafur-

Khatri-29-12-2013.jpg.

Rogan art with Tree of Life motif, by Abdul Gara Khatri from Kutch, Gujarat, India

Priya Chaturvedi and Aditya Ranjan

52 encyclopedia of tourism management and marketing

Handicraft production and marketing are other activities, and the value chain itself has
developing and have increasingly become an an important role in that process. Stakeholders
essential aspect of the tourism sector. Buying can better understand the added value of
handicrafts is a popular tourist activity that handicrafts by conducting a detailed tourism
is universal. Handicrafts are an integral com- handicraft production and sales analysis. The
ponent of the visitor experience, showcasing analysis of the tourist handicraft value chain
indigenous people’s abilities and skills and pro- helps governments and stakeholders to generate
viding income and employment. Handicrafts information on the industry’s socio-economic
are an important element of the tourist expe- impacts at both the macro and micro levels, as
rience since they represent local customs and well as making recommendations to ensure the
indigenous communities. Handicraft products sector’s and all actors’ growth (Hill, Jones and
are also symbols that have varied meanings in Schilling, 2014). For instance, to expand the
different societies, promoting the continuity of handicraft sector and offer a memorable experi-
local customs. Local handicrafts represent the ence to tourists while also profiting merchants,
areas visited by tourists and the experiences a combination of good selling skills, discounts
they enjoyed (Upadhyay, 2020). For centuries, and packaging and so on needs to be employed
handicrafts have captivated travellers seeking in production, offering and distributing handi-
handmade products as souvenirs of their travel craft products.
experiences. Souvenirs are cultural items that Handicraft development can foster tour-
travellers come upon and purchase while travel- ism and destination economy growth when
ling, adding to the overall experience (Shtudiner incorporated into a country’s cultural identity.
et al., 2019). Besides luring travellers with the However, in the current setting, handicraft man-
promise of pleasant memories when they bring ufacturers often do not supply a specific prod-
handicrafts back home as a souvenir, they gen- uct to their local communities as much as they
erate curiosity in others to visit the destination meet tourist demand. Handicraft production
(United Nations World Tourism Organization aimed solely at local audiences has become too
[UNWTO], 2018). expensive to be sustainable in many developing
The tourism handicrafts value chain, illus- countries because of overuse or disappearance
trated in the figure, encompasses the activities of valuable resource materials. A further chal-
that move a product/service through the many lenge is the flow of imported and manufactured
stages of production, beginning with transport- goods into local markets, which are more cost-
ing material from various producers and ending effective to make and meet the same needs as
with the final stage of delivery to end customers local handicrafts.
(Vignati and Laumans, 2010). Tourism handi- Tourism stakeholders can boost local produc-
crafts play an important role in understanding tion and consumption of handicrafts in areas
the marketing process of the products and all where modernization has impeded the latter.

Raw Material Producer

Supplier Outlet
Craftspeople

Accessories Street Vendor

Supplier
Handicrafts
Tourist

Equipment Souvenir Shops

Supplier

Support Producer
Institution Group Market

Tourism handicrafts value chain

Priya Chaturvedi and Aditya Ranjan

 handicrafts 53

Tourism has helped to conserve knowledge of Tourism, Cham, Switzerland: Springer, https://doi.
indigenous communities’ traditional creation org/10.1007/978-3-319-01669-6_367-1.
and use of local products. As a result, tour- Shtudiner, Z., Klein, G., Zwilling, M. and Kantor, J.
ism has been identified as the leading driver of (2019), ‘The value of souvenirs: endowment effect
continuous production of handicrafts that are and religion’, Annals of Tourism Research, 74,
no longer economically viable to manufacture Article 17032.
locally. Some tourism stakeholders believe that United Nations World Tourism Organization
tourism business leads to mass production of (UNWTO) (2018), Tourism and Culture Synergies,
handicrafts that vary from traditional proce- Madrid: UNWTO.
dures and materials to boost the effectiveness Upadhyay, P. (2020), ‘Promoting employment and
of the process. As a result, such behaviours of preserving cultural heritage: a study of handicraft
manufacturers are thought to lead to derivative products tourism in Pokhara, Nepal’, Journal of
and inauthentic presentations of culture for Tourism & Adventure, 3(1), 1–19.
tourists’ advantage, not for the preservation of Vignati, F. and Laumans, Q. (2010), ‘Value chain
cultural values. Therefore, tourism stakeholders analysis as a kick off for tourism destination devel-
need to make efforts to maintain the uniqueness opment in Maputo City’, in W. Anderson (ed.),
and authenticity of the handicrafts. Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference
Priya Chaturvedi and Aditya Ranjan on Sustainable Tourism in Developing Countries,
Tanzania, University of Dar-es-salaam, pp. 1–13.
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Handicraft Artisans, New Delhi: National Council
Cohen, E. (1993), ‘Introduction: investigating tourist of Applied Economic Research.
arts’, Annals of Tourism Research, 20(1), 1–8. Zargham, H. (2007), ‘Sustainable tourism develop-
Hill, C.W.L., Jones, G.R. and Schilling, M.A. (2014), ment and handicrafts in the developing world’, WIT
Strategic Management: Theory: An Integrated Transactions on Ecology and the Environment,
Approach, Boston, MA: Cengage Learning. 102, 1011–17.
Scott, M.K. (2015), ‘Handicraft, tourism’, in
J. Jafari and H. Xiao (eds), Encyclopedia of

Priya Chaturvedi and Aditya Ranjan