In this guide 6 sections
Open one record for every piece the day money or material leaves your hands. Log the advance, the yarn or pashmina issued by weight, the stage reached, each payment against it and the export order it will fill. Then you can see what is owed, what is stuck and what can ship.
Keep one record per piece, not one ledger per artisan
Most traders in Srinagar keep a khata or notebook page for each artisan. It shows a running balance and little else. A weaver with three shawls on the loom and a carpet knotter with one rug in a frame look the same on that page. You cannot tell which advance belongs to which article.
Give each piece its own line. Note the design name, the size, the artisan, the date the work was handed over and the date you expect it back. One artisan can then have six lines open at once.
The artisan’s total balance still exists. It is simply the sum of the open pieces, so the two views never disagree.
Record every issue of material by weight and date
Raw material is where disputes begin. Pashmina yarn, silk thread, wool for a hand-knotted carpet and papier-mâché pulp are all handed over in lots. Write down the weight or the count at the moment of handing over, and have the artisan’s thumb or signature confirmed on the slip.
When the piece returns, weigh it. A finished Kani shawl should account for the yarn issued, with a small allowance for wastage that you agreed beforehand. A gap larger than that allowance is a question to ask while the memory is fresh, not six months later.
Photograph the slip or the sample card if your artisans are comfortable with it. A phone camera is enough.
- Material type, colour code and dyed lot
- Weight or count issued, with date
- Agreed wastage allowance for the piece
- Weight and condition on return
- Who handed it over and who received it
Name the stages a piece passes through
A sozni shawl and a Kani shawl take months. A carpet can take longer. If your only statuses are open and closed, you learn nothing between the first day and the last.
Break the work into the stages your trade already uses. For a shawl this might be spinning, dyeing, weaving or needlework, washing and finishing. For a carpet it could be design card, warping, knotting, clipping and washing. Mark each stage with the date it was reached.
Now a glance at the list shows which pieces have sat at the same stage for forty days. Those are the ones to visit.
- Stage names that match how your artisans talk
- Date each stage was reached
- Photo of the piece at the main milestones
- Expected return date, revised when it slips
Match each payment to the work it paid for
Advances in this trade come in several forms. There is cash for household needs, money to buy extra thread and instalments at set stages. Record each as its own entry on the piece, with the mode and the reason.
When the article is accepted, the final payment is the agreed rate less what has been advanced and any deduction for damage. The sum should be visible before you pay, not worked out at the counter.
Where an advance was given against general future work, hold it on the artisan’s profile as unallocated. Attach it to a piece when the next job is handed over. That keeps old balances from hiding inside new ones.
Link every piece to an export order and review weekly
A buyer in Dubai or Milan orders by design and quantity, with a ship date. Link the pieces in progress to that order. You will see at once whether twelve shawls promised for the first week of the month are actually at finishing or still on the loom.
Set aside half an hour each week to read the list by order. Sort by ship date, then by stage. Anything late is either chased, moved to another artisan or discussed with the buyer early.
Before the next season, count the open advances. Settle the ones that are old and decide which artisans you will give fresh work to.
Artisan piece card
A one-page card kept for each article in progress. The top block holds design, size, artisan and expected return. The middle block is a table of material issued, with date, weight and signature. The stage strip lists each stage with a date box. The bottom block lists advances and payments, then the export order and ship date.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Can a paper register do this job?
For a handful of artisans, yes. A register with one page per piece works if it is kept up daily. It struggles once you have many pieces, several orders and staff who write the same entry differently.
Do artisans need to use the software?
No. They hand over and return pieces as before. Your staff enter the slip afterwards, ideally from a phone at the counter or in the workshop.
How do I record a piece that is rejected?
Mark the stage as returned for rework or rejected and note the reason. Keep the material weight and any deduction on the same record, so the settlement follows what was agreed.
Will this work when the internet is poor?
Choose a tool that lets staff enter slips offline and syncs later. Ask for that in a demo before you commit, because connections in the valley can drop at any time.