Both The Anou Cooperative and the women’s cooperative are focused on female empowerment. They do this by giving women an opportunity to produce and sell their own products while being a part of the business or fully taking control of their business. Both organizations also offer a social network for the women. In addition, their focus is on artisan crafts, such as leather goods or rugs.
In terms of business model, the main difference between the souks and women’s cooperative is how the products get into the hands of customers. Many of the souks seem to be owned by merchants who purchase products from artisans and sell them. This type of business model involves a business-to-business interaction, or intermediary, before the merchant sells to the customer, business-to-consumer. In the process, based on what we have learned so far, artisans who make the products themselves likely lose out on profits, as most go to the merchants. On the other hand, the women’s cooperative has a more direct-to-consumer model. Although many of the women make products in their homes and give them to the cooperative to sell, the women are still connected to the organization.
In terms of similarities, both the souks and women’s cooperative are interested in the added-value of their products. Further, both business types engage in price negotiation, although the women’s cooperative we visited does not bargain with customers for small products.
As a consumer, I prefer the women’s cooperatives business model because I feel more connected to the products. When I purchase from a souk, the person selling me the item may or may not know the story behind it. At the women’s cooperative, I can see and hear its story first-hand. When we visited the women’s cooperative today, we heard straight from the dedicated people who work there and even had the opportunity to make our own leather product. By making a leather sunglasses case myself from scratch, cutting the leather, poking holes in the leather, and sewing the item together, I gained a better understanding of the care, hard work, and time it takes to produce just one product. The experience as a whole encouraged me to purchase from them because I wanted to support their mission and quality products. It seems that direct-to-consumer models allow for more flexibility and creativity when it comes to how people sell and promote products.
