Diff-abled siblings open store with a cause

The siblings, who suffer from cerebral palsy, decided to start a store to help support other diff-abled people who produce hand-made, artisanal products.

On January 13, the brothers and their partner Karthikeyan opened their first independent outlet at Navallur, called the Twin Twigs Gallery. The objective of the store is to promote and connect diff-abled producers and related organisations with a larger and nation-wide consumer base, as well as help smaller businesses with marketing and communication.

“We found that getting a platform for people with disability to exhibit and sell their products is a daunting task. This is because the talents of the differently-abled are not given any importance or recognition. Hence, we thought of giving them a platform at our gallery, to exhibit and sell their products even as we create awareness among the public in general,” said 31-year-old Sunder Ram.

The store sells a wide variety of goods from stationery, cutlery, bags, clothes, and utility items made by diff-abled people from across the nation. Additionally, the enterprise helps connect these producers with buyers from across the nation, including the corporates.

“We explain USPs, utility value and purpose of creation to the producers, as most of the differently-abled or related organisations lack a marketing strategy or skill. We also inform them of the feedback from the buyers to help improve quality,” said Sri Ram.

The new store opened in Chennai hopes to introduce even more producers from Tamil Nadu. “The main issue,” explains Sri Ram, “unlike in case of khadi, there is no government support in promoting such products. We hope to bridge that gap.”