About Us

 

Brief history of grassroots:

Grassroots is a Social Enterprise of PROTTYASHI and is being used as a market engagement platform for the products made by the artisans supported by PROTTYASHI livelihood programs. PROTTYASHI has been implementing livelihood projects at Chattogram and Cox’s Bazar to promote economic empowerment of people trapped in the cycle of poverty. To ensure sustainable market linkage and improve the livelihoods of vulnerable people, PROTTYASHI established Grassroots in 2015 for helping local artisans, craftsmen and small-scale enterprises promote their products.

Since the arrival of the Rohingya influx, PROTTYASHI has implemented several livelihood projects in Cox’s Bazar to strengthen crisis affected people’s economic resilience, create income-generating opportunities, and improve their overall well-being amidst the emerged humanitarian crisis.

PROTTYASHI has linked the local artisans, craftsmen, and small-scale enterprises of Cox’s Bazar developed under the livelihood projects with Grassroots for marketing their products, enhancing their skills, and connecting them to broader economic opportunities, further contributing to the community's financial stability and growth. In this objective, 2 shops have been set up at Laboni and Sugandha Point, along with 25 kiosks in various hotels across Cox’s Bazar.

To broaden the extent and reach of Grassroots, PROTTYASHI has developed electronic version of this initiative in the form of e-commerce platform (www.grassrootsbd.com) with the support of International Organization for Migration (IOM) in 2022.

Grassroots is particularly contributing to the objective of Livelihood and Skill Development Sector (LSDS)  in humanitarian response to increase the resilience of vulnerable populations and ensure sustainable market linkages. PROTTYASHI plans to extend market linkage support to different partners under LSDS in Cox’s Bazar encouraging them to promote products of their livelihood beneficiaries through Grassroots. Through this initiative, PROTTYASHI aims to make Grassroots as an open market integration tool for the LSDS in Cox’s Bazar.

This platform showcases a range of items, including handmade crafts, home decor, clothing, accessories, and traditional art. Grassroots has an effective marketing strategy that utilizes social media, digital platforms, and community events to increase visibility and attract more customers. The enterprise emphasizes quality, authenticity, sustainability, and social impact, contributing to the economic development of targeted communities. Grassroots plans to expand its scope both home and abroad, creating a worldwide market for handmade products from Bangladesh.

 

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