Craftsmen of the Dvina region will be able to promote their creations online
The organizers of the international technical assistance project "Support for Home-Based Self-Employment" within the Latvia – Lithuania – Belarus Cross-Border Cooperation Programme have launched an international web platform for promoting handmade goods from residents of border regions.
Now, on the trilingual website www.laby co, every craftsperson from Vitebsk region and Latgale will be able to post information about themselves, showcase their work and put it up for sale, leave videos with master classes, and communicate with other artisans. Potential buyers will be able to purchase items they like.
The creation of the online platform was preceded by extensive work to increase the economic activity of the population in the border regions. This primarily concerns those who work from home and do not belong to professional associations of artisans, meaning they have few opportunities to promote their goods. Such people possess practical skills in creating original and unique handmade items but often lack knowledge of the basics of entrepreneurship. Therefore, one of the project's objectives was to conduct seminars to acquire specialized knowledge about the full cycle of promoting artisan crafts – from project development to product delivery to the customer. The seminars "Promoting Home-Based Self-Employment" were held in Vitebsk with the participation of Latvian artisans, as well as in Daugavpils and Rezekne, which were visited by masters from the Dvina region. During these visits, exhibitions of handmade items were held, which local residents of Latvian cities could explore at festive fairs, and residents of the Vitebsk region during the "Slavianski Bazaar" arts festival and the "Dazhynki" rural workers' fair in Horadok.
The project was implemented over a year with funding from the European Union. The managing partner was the Latvian fund «Verus», the partner was the Association of Employers and Entrepreneurs with the support of the Cultural and Historical Complex «Golden Ring of Vitebsk «Dvina». The result of their joint activities is pleasing, as are the welcome words on the internet resource page: «Laby» – this is a website that tells about people who create unique and original things in Latvia, Belarus, and other parts of the world, each in their own home. It is a story about determined people who prefer to do what they love».
Olga Maslovskaya, "Vitebskie vesti"