Why We Exist

Threads of Change: How MarketPlace Began

MarketPlace: Handwork of India began in 1980, when women in Mumbai’s low-income neighborhoods had little to no access to work. Founders Pushpika Freitas and Lalita Monteiro started with three women, teaching them to sew quilts from home—no machines, factories, or childcare required. The idea spread quickly, and by 1983, 75 women had joined. While handwork was dismissed in India, U.S. customers embraced the beauty of the craft and the value of fair wages. MarketPlace was incorporated in Illinois in 1986, launched its first catalog in 1990, and shifted to cooperatives in 1992. Today, 200 artisans run 11 cooperatives.

Our Process

Garments are Just One Layer of the Story

While making beautiful clothing is part of what these women do, it is only the beginning. MarketPlace’s mission is to enable their full development—economic, personal, and social—so they can become confident leaders in their homes and communities. Women not only earn a living and learn skills like  sewing and embroidery, but also take on responsibilities like managing production, quality control, finances, and cooperative operations.

Where Earning a Living Leads to Finding a Voice

At the heart of our development model is leadership for social change. Through hands-on experience and training, women learn to analyze, speak out, and organize at the business and personal level. They question long-held beliefs that hold women back and become active participants in enriching their lives and the lives of those around them.

Empowerment Is the Real Product

Social programs, managed by the artisans provide space for learning and growth for themselves and their children. Women explore topics from health to financial planning, while also developing their voice and decision-making skills. Programs for their children support education and emotional development, ensuring that change reaches the next generation.

When Women Lead, Generations Follow

By integrating livelihood with empowerment, and personal growth with
family and community change, MarketPlace supports women in transforming not
only what they do, but who they become and in doing so, they inspire the
next generation. Their children grow up seeing confidence, leadership, and
equality in action, shaping a future where these values are the norm.

Our Process

Garments are Just One Layer of the Story

While making beautiful clothing is part of what these women do, it is only the beginning. MarketPlace’s mission is to enable their full development—economic, personal, and social—so they can become confident leaders in their homes and communities. Women not only earn a living and learn skills like  sewing and embroidery, but also take on responsibilities like managing production, quality control, finances, and cooperative operations.

Where Earning a Living Leads to Finding a Voice

At the heart of our development model is leadership for social change. Through hands-on experience and training, women learn to analyze, speak out, and organize at the business and personal level. They question long-held beliefs that hold women back and become active participants in enriching their lives and the lives of those around them.

Empowerment Is the Real Product

Social programs, managed by the artisans provide space for learning and growth for themselves and their children. Women explore topics from health to financial planning, while also developing their voice and decision-making skills. Programs for their children support education and emotional development, ensuring that change reaches the next generation.

When Women Lead, Generations Follow

By integrating livelihood with empowerment, and personal growth with
family and community change, MarketPlace supports women in transforming not
only what they do, but who they become and in doing so, they inspire the
next generation. Their children grow up seeing confidence, leadership, and
equality in action, shaping a future where these values are the norm.