Employing Rural Women

Located in Soledad de Guadalupe, Querétaro, the artisan ceramic workshop “Las Mariposas” faces high production costs; the women are required to change working molds every two months, given that with one mold they can only produce 100 pieces. Even though the working molds can be used afterwards, the quality of products is reduced and women sometimes lose up to 40% of products that are made using an expired working mold.

Each working mold is made using artisan primary molds in the state of Guanajuato. To reduce production costs, the members of the workshop recently received training and learned how to make their own working molds. They acquired six primary molds, which helped them to significantly improve the quality of their products, reduce losses during the production process, and, most importantly, decrease operation costs. The members of the group have also updated the prices, which have already been applied at various points of sale in the Sierra Gorda. Furthermore, women are actively looking for new market opportunities outside of the region.

It is hoped that in the future they will be able to acquire all the necessary primary molds to guarantee the elaboration of more than 50 products that they currently offer, as well as to cover special orders of the products with higher demand.

The members of the group also participated in a workshop that took place in the facilities of the Centro Tierra Sierra Gorda in Jalpan de Serra and focused on the analysis of their micro-business using a SWOT analysis framework. Besides reinforcing their sense of belonging to the group and identifying opportunities, members of the group were able to generate alliances with other projects that form part of the microenterprise network in the Sierra Gorda.

Currently, the artisans are renovating the space where they showcase their products and host visitors who wish to experience their craft. For example, they improved lighting, which enables them to carry out their activity with greater ease. Every two months they also replace their molds, donating old ones to their neighbors in a form of gypsum blocks. These blocks are crushed and used to fill the streets or improve public spaces.

Their products have been showcased at various promotional events both in the Sierra Gorda and in Santiago de Querétaro where they have been well accepted by the public.