Greetings everyone! This Mohammad Sumon! from #Bangladesh

^{Hello everyone! I hope you all are doing well by the grace of the Almighty.}

Today, I am very excited to share my entry for the Contest organized by the Steem4Entrepreneurs community. A special thanks to the community admin @solaymann brother, for hosting such an engaging competition.

^{Spreading positivity and creativity through my words.}

SLC31-W6: Cottage Craft Shop (Aarong)

I am sharing my experience with the Gulshan outlet of Aarong, the largest and most popular handicraft and cottage industry company in Bangladesh. I visited this outlet, as it is close to my office. It is not just a shop, but it reflects our native culture. Earlier, I bought a Panjabi from this outlet.

The cottage handicraft shop that I visited today for the contest is the Gulshan outlet of Aarong. It is a completely permanent and spacious flagship store. Here I saw a huge collection of cottage handicrafts, including fashion items. I chose this outlet because it was close to my office. The Aarong-Gulshan outlet is located right next to the main road of the **Tejgaon-Gulshan link road. Anyone can easily reach here from anywhere in Dhaka City by bus, Uber, CNG, or rickshaw. I think Aarong will be quite comfortable even if you travel by private car, as it has its own huge parking facility.

I gathered some information from their own website; it started its journey as a social business of BRAC in Bangladesh in 1978. The main objective of establishing Aarong was to directly ensure fair prices for handicrafts produced by rural and marginal artisans (especially women) and protect them from exploitation by middlemen. I learned from the outlet manager that this outlet of theirs was launched in 2001. Its aim is to bring traditional handicrafts, Jamdani, silk, and modern indigenous fashion to the buyers of Gulshan and surrounding areas.

• Founder: Sir Fazle Hasan Abed.
• Date of establishment: December 18, 1978 (First outlet: Shukrabad, Dhaka).
• Current outlets: Currently, there are more than 30 outlets across the country, and about 87,000 artisans are associated with it.
• Features: Huge collection of clothing, jewelry, home decor, and handicrafts and ample parking facilities.

I saw that there are more than 100 employees working at Aarong's Gulshan outlet, who perform specific duties in different departments under the outlet manager. The customer service department directly helps customers in choosing products in different sections like sarees, salwar-kameez, Punjabi, jewelry, and home decor. The cash and bill department handles the work of quick billing, payment, and packaging after shopping. The floor manager and shift in charge of the floor supervision department ensure the orderliness of the entire showroom and the correct display of products. On the other hand, the stock and inventory department keeps records of new products and works to fill product shortages on the floor. In addition, the security and cleanliness department are responsible for keeping the entire showroom clean, including controlling the main gate, traffic and parking.

This outlet in Aarong-Gulshan seems to me to be an international-standard store because it has various facilities for the customers, which I have mentioned below:

1. Lift and Escalator: There are modern lifts and escalators for moving from one floor to another.
2. Security and Electricity: State-of-the-art CCTV cameras, archways, and a skilled security team. In addition, there is a powerful generator backup and central air conditioning (central AC) system.
3. Others: There is a play area for children (play zone), trial room, and very clean washrooms.

I have noticed that the quality of every product in Aarong is ensured. I have mentioned a list of prices of some craft products below:

Making payments at Aarong is very easy and modern. They accept payments through cash, cards, and mobile banking.

I bought a Handmade Hogla Basket for my family. I was impressed by the unique design of the product. When I bought the Hogla basket, the sales representative helped me a lot in choosing.

I feel that shopping at the Aarong-Gulshan outlet is always a royal experience, as it is in a VIP area of Dhaka. Their environment and product presentation are of very high quality. Although the prices may seem a bit higher than the general market, it is justified when you consider the durability of the products and the labor of the craftsmen. Most importantly, by shopping here, the marginalized artisans of our country are indirectly benefited. The worst thing is, they do not provide any bags after buying products from Aarong. You have to pay separately for the bags. My rating is 9.5/10.

In my opinion, this kind of cottage industry touch brings a piece of peace of mind into our mechanical lives. The Aarong Gulshan outlet is truly commendable with its blend of tradition and modernity. Those of you who want to see the real form of local cottage industry must visit any Aarong outlet once. I hope that through this review, a beautiful craft shop has been added to the Steam Atlas map, which will inspire others to visit this shop as well.

I would like to invite @ikwal, @nicely40, and @saxopedia to participate in this contest. Hope to see your wonderful entries! 🙂