PROMOTING SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN INDIA - A case study by

Singapore International Foundation (SIF)

Background

Social entrepreneurship is commonly understood as building enterprises with social impact

embedded in the business model. These enterprises aim to address various social issues
through market-based solutions. The emerging field of social entrepreneurship is growing
rapidly and attracting increased attention from many sectors. Market-based solutions to social
issues are transforming the face of development, while spurring overall growth in India. For
example, social enterprises are connecting dairy farmers in far off villages to urban markets
and bringing reliable power to off-grid villages.

Such mission-driven businesses that improve the lives of the low-income population, while
generating profits have only recently gained global prominence, but have captured the
attention of many who are looking for solutions to greatest development challenges. In India,
these businesses have become a national phenomenon in less than a decade, with a robust
ecosystem of supporting players developing around them.

Figure 1 India as a Model for Social Entrepreneurship

Source: The Chicago Council on Global Affairs

Sustainability of Social enterprises

The current broad definition of a social enterprise is destined to expand as more social
enterprises with diverse models emerge. Additionally, a common characteristic shared by all
social enterprises is social and economic sustainability. Figure 1 illustrates where social
enterprises fall on the sustainability spectrum. Organizations try to maintain a balance
between social and economic sustainability, placing various levels of emphasis on each. Not
surprisingly, social enterprises focus more on societal aspects, but economic sustainability is
also equally important.

The importance of scalability for social businesses is not very different than for other sectors.
However, given that several social enterprises are still in an early stage, most of their focus
tends to be on short-term performance rather than on sustainability in the long term. While
this mindset is now gradually beginning to shift, there are various changes that social
enterprises need to make to facilitate long term growth and bring about social transformation.

Figure 2 Where social enterprises fall on the sustainability spectrum

Source: The Four Lenses Strategic Framework, Virtue Ventures LLC, 2010; A.T. Kearney analysis

Singapore International Foundation (SIF): Young Social Entrepreneur programme

SIFs Young Social Entrepreneurs (YSE) programme inspires, equips and enables youth of
different nationalities to start or scale up their social enterprises in Asia, including Singapore
and India. Through the YSE programme, participants learn from and interact with leading
social entrepreneurs, business professionals and peers, while expanding their network for
potential collaborations for good.

Since its inception in 2010, the YSE programme has groomed 656 alumni, spanning 27
nationalities, with participants from across Asia (including India), and some from America,
Europe & Africa. The programme comprises workshops, mentorship from McKinsey &
Company, Temasek International and experienced entrepreneurs, overseas study visits and
funding pitches. Of the total teams each year, 6 stand a chance to win S$20,000 each. Some of
the prominent winners from India include Social Cops, Even Cargo.
Case Study Example of a participating Social Enterprise in YSE Programme
A few university students from India, while travelling across Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, met many
villagers and talented artisans (Details in Exhibit 1), who inspired them to come up with a
social enterprise idea called Team X. Despite the villagers living in poverty, Team X is
humbled by their desire to educate themselves to improve their livelihood, as well as by the
talented artisans, who have not had the opportunities to succeed.

Artisanal activity is the second largest employer in developing countries. However, most
artisans remain in poverty due to restricted market access. Due to the lack of market linkages
and limited access to social media, the artisans are not able to understand the current market
demand and capture attention for their products.

Related social challenges in the rural areas

1. Majority of the rural families require their children to work in farms, so that they are able
to afford food. In return for their work, most of the villagers who worked for their
landlords were not getting paid, but instead given meals to compensate for their labor.
With this structure, there is no opportunity for them to exit the poverty cycle.

2. Local schools in villages lack basic facilities and sanitation systems, making it
unsuitable for children to study. Lessons are cancelled when the weather is bad, as the
schools lack sheltered roof. Apart from the lack of physical infrastructure, the school also
lacks proper educational resources, such as books. The inadequacy of the education
system makes it hard to track progress of the students with no standardized procedures.

3. Children lack funds to pursue further education after graduating from the local school
at the age of 12. This pushes them to join their families to work in the farms, which again
leads to the trap of poverty cycle.

Team X: Social Enterprise solution

1. Team X aims to empower rural artisans by designing and exposing their products to the
global market. Team X is an intermediary, which not only serves as a bridge between the
artisans and the market, but also a social organization dedicated to social mobility of
those living in poverty through education and vocational training.

2. Team X offers high quality artisan products (leather bags) through collaborations and
engagements with both rural and isolated communities. Because most of the artisans
living under an impoverished environment are not connected to the media, they are not
aware of the current fashion trends that are in demand.

Hence, Team X propose to partner with local artisans to collaborate and design unique
products that meet the demand of modern societies while adding and preserving the
heritage and essence of artisans local culture. These products will be sold to their
customers through established online platforms to reduce cost and build strong brand
 recognition. They will also be sold at flea markets and through shops who agree to place
Team Xs products on consignment.

3. For their customer segment, Team X is targeting millennials and working adults between
the age of 23 40, who appreciate cultural/ vintage leather products, as well as brand
enthusiasts, who share a lot about fashion on social media.

4. To foster a community spirit between Team X and its customers, social media channels
and blog posts will be used to provide regular updates of Team Xs journey and how they
have transformed the lives of the villagers with the support of the customers. Customers
will also be encouraged to contribute ideas and take part in the Team X movement to
eradicate rural poverty.

5. Proceeds from the sale of products will be used by Team X to restructure the facilities of
schools in rural areas that lack the most basic necessities. After which, they will also work
closely with the teachers to reorganize the education system and increase the quality of
education. In the long run, Team X seeks to provide scholarships to bright students to
pursue further education, and enable social mobility as the more educated children are
likely to get better employment opportunities.

Solutions for the way forward

Team X is looking to scale the social enterprise to make it into a sustainable business model.
Certain challenges that need to be addressed to achieve this are summarized below.

1. Marketing and Branding

What marketing strategies can Team X adopt to make their product stand out in a
competitive global market of similar items?
How can Team X generate greater awareness of their social cause, and translate it
into support for their products?

2. Reaching the target audience to increase sales

Do you think Team X is looking at the right target audience? Is it too narrow or
broad?
How can Team X target the right audience to increase sales?

3. Optimal supply chain for sourcing reliable artisans and raw materials
Initial ground sensing has indicated that several artisans are not consistent in
delivering their promises
Being new to the market, Team X is relatively inexperienced in finding the best
quality low cost materials for their bags
How can Team X address these challenges?

4. Sustainable revenue streams to pay the artisans a higher income?

What pricing strategy should they adopt? For e.g., aim to maximize sales at the
 lowest price possible or adopt a more premium price?
Do you think their current distribution channels are sufficient and effective? If not,
what else can they tap into?
Are there any more partnerships that they can explore to achieve both financial
and social impact outcomes?

5. How should Team X track and measure (in quantifiable terms) their Social Impact
on artisans and schools/ children?

6. Are there any additional suggestions for Team X to scale their operations?

The solution document has to be in word / pdf within 1,000 words (excluding exhibits and
excel sheets) in Book Antiqua font 11.

Exhibit 1