MSA ETHOS
GUJARAT, INDIA
Envisioning manufacturing to be radically different.
OUR FOUNDER, SHIVAM PUNJYA, CREATED A SPACE WHERE GARMENT WORKERS, ARTISANS, AND FACTORIES WERE AN INTIMATE PART OF A BRAND’S CORE DNA.
Ensuring garment workers and artisans have a safe working space should be the norm. But it isn’t.
“The behno Standard” was crafted after a deep dive into academia, time spent in the field, and having worked closely with various stakeholders at the back-end of fashion’s supply chain.
To take “The behno Standard” from theory to reality, Shivam partnered with nonprofit Muni Seva Ashram (MSA) and an industry veteran, Mukesh Kothari, to build a factory called MSA Ethos.
MSA Ethos is a revolutionary, intersectional approach to manufacturing where MSA assisted in its social programming and Mr. Kothari, its Managing Director, overlooked factory operations ensuring quality control and a smooth functioning of operations.
Setting the standard.
“THE BEHNO STANDARD,” INCREMENTALLY IMPLEMENTED, IS MADE UP OF:
HEALTH
- Provision of exemplary healthcare services including coverage and access to health clinics.
- Access to fresh sanitized water and additional nutritional ammunition for those in need.
GARMENT WORKER SOCIAL MOBILITY
- Active acknowledgement of garment workers through fair and transparent agreements.
- Elimination of child labor.
- Equipping garment workers with specific high-end technical and creative craft trainings to further their skillset.
- Fair wages.
FAMILY PLANNING
- Accessibility to and provision of affordable family planning education and services
WOMEN'S RIGHTS
- Prioritization of women’s legal and physical social mobility by providing leadership opportunities to female workers.
- Ensuring equal remuneration for women as their male counterparts in similar positions or roles.
WORKER SATISFACTION AND BENEFITS
- Development of clean recreational spaces within the factory setting where garment workers feel safe and welcome to relax, socialize, and find spiritual and educational resources.
- Access to schools and educational and recreational resources for garment workers’ children.
- Subsidies and reimbursements for transportation to and from home when appropriate.
ECO-CONSCIOUSNESS
- Utilization of state of the art machinery geared towards safety and controlled carbon footprint and environmental waste.
- Installment of safe foundation infrastructure abiding to international regulations on safety standards and worker rights.
- Sourcing of leather from compliant tanneries and factories using leather resulting from the existing food supply chain.
- No fur or exotic skins.
- Limiting fabric wastage.
- No sourcing from ancient and endangered forests and a preference for innovative alternatives in partnership with Canopy.
“MSA ETHOS WAS AN INTERSECTIONAL APPROACH TO MANUFACTURING.”
Brainchild of a brilliant brain.
MUNI SEVA ASHRAM IS SPEARHEADED BY DR. VIKRAM PATEL, A VISIONARY OF OUR TIMES.
Dr. Patel built the nonprofit to function like a self-sustaining village. Dr. Patel flourishes in intellectually yet realistically implementing concepts and systems that may, at first, seem far-fetched for a nonprofit village nestled in a rural landscape.
MSA respectfully brings modernity to a rural space through progressive and cutting-edge practices, all considering local nuances.
MSA is a nonprofit that's self sustaining, educative, caring, and mostly, a space for marginalized communities.
Portraitures of a powerhouse.
THE GARMENT WORKER PROJECT.
Our founder initiated The Garment Worker Project, which captured the less visible side of fashion.
We invited fashion photographer Dan Smith and documentary filmmaker, Kent Mathews, to MSA Ethos.
MSA ETHOS
GUJARAT, INDIA
Envisioning manufacturing to be radically different.
OUR FOUNDER, SHIVAM PUNJYA, CREATED A SPACE WHERE GARMENT WORKERS, ARTISANS, AND FACTORIES WERE AN INTIMATE PART OF A BRAND’S CORE DNA.
Ensuring garment workers and artisans have a safe working space should be the norm. But it isn’t.
“The behno Standard” was crafted after a deep dive into academia, time spent in the field, and having worked closely with various stakeholders at the back-end of fashion’s supply chain.
To take “The behno Standard” from theory to reality, Shivam partnered with nonprofit Muni Seva Ashram (MSA) and an industry veteran, Mukesh Kothari, to build a factory called MSA Ethos.
MSA Ethos is a revolutionary, intersectional approach to manufacturing where MSA assisted in its social programming and Mr. Kothari, its Managing Director, overlooked factory operations ensuring quality control and a smooth functioning of operations.
Setting the standard.
“THE BEHNO STANDARD,” INCREMENTALLY IMPLEMENTED, IS MADE UP OF:
HEALTH
- Provision of exemplary healthcare services including coverage and access to health clinics.
- Access to fresh sanitized water and additional nutritional ammunition for those in need.
GARMENT WORKER SOCIAL MOBILITY
- Active acknowledgement of garment workers through fair and transparent agreements
- Elimination of child labor.
- Equipping garment workers with specific high-end technical and creative craft trainings to further their skillset.
- Fair wages
FAMILY PLANNING
- Accessibility to and provision of affordable family planning education and services
WOMEN'S RIGHTS
- Prioritization of women’s legal and physical social mobility by providing leadership opportunities to female workers.
- Ensuring equal remuneration for women as their male counterparts in similar positions or roles.
WORKER SATISFACTION AND BENEFITS
- Development of clean recreational spaces within the factory setting where garment workers feel safe and welcome to relax, socialize, and find spiritual and educational resources.
- Access to schools and educational and recreational resources for garment workers’ children
- Subsidies and reimbursements for transportation to and from home when appropriate
ECO-CONSCIOUSNESS
- Utilization of state of the art machinery geared towards safety and controlled carbon footprint and environmental waste.
- Installment of safe foundation infrastructure abiding to international regulations on safety standards and worker rights.
- Sourcing of leather from compliant tanneries and factories using leather resulting from the existing food supply chain.
- No fur or exotic skins.
- Limiting fabric wastage
- No sourcing from ancient and endangered forests and a preference for innovative alternatives in partnership with Canopy.
Setting the standard.
“THE BEHNO STANDARD,” INCREMENTALLY IMPLEMENTED, IS MADE UP OF:
HEALTH
- Provision of exemplary healthcare services including coverage and access to health clinics.
- Access to fresh sanitized water and additional nutritional ammunition for those in need.
GARMENT WORKER SOCIAL MOBILITY
- Active acknowledgement of garment workers through fair and transparent agreements
- Elimination of child labor.
- Equipping garment workers with specific high-end technical and creative craft trainings to further their skillset.
- Fair wages
FAMILY PLANNING
- Accessibility to and provision of affordable family planning education and services
WOMEN'S RIGHTS
- Prioritization of women’s legal and physical social mobility by providing leadership opportunities to female workers.
- Ensuring equal remuneration for women as their male counterparts in similar positions or roles.
WORKER SATISFACTION AND BENEFITS
- Development of clean recreational spaces within the factory setting where garment workers feel safe and welcome to relax, socialize, and find spiritual and educational resources.
- Access to schools and educational and recreational resources for garment workers’ children
- Subsidies and reimbursements for transportation to and from home when appropriate
ECO-CONSCIOUSNESS
- Utilization of state of the art machinery geared towards safety and controlled carbon footprint and environmental waste.
- Installment of safe foundation infrastructure abiding to international regulations on safety standards and worker rights.
- Sourcing of leather from compliant tanneries and factories using leather resulting from the existing food supply chain.
- No fur or exotic skins.
- Limiting fabric wastage
- No sourcing from ancient and endangered forests and a preference for innovative alternatives in partnership with Canopy.
“MSA ETHOS WAS AN PRINCIPLED APPROACH TO MANUFACTURING.”
Brainchild of a brilliant brain.
MUNI SEVA ASHRAM IS SPEARHEADED BY DR. VIKRAM PATEL, A VISIONARY OF OUR TIMES.
Dr. Patel built the nonprofit to function like a self-sustaining village. Dr. Patel flourishes in intellectually yet realistically implementing concepts and systems that may, at first, seem far-fetched for a nonprofit village nestled in a rural landscape.
MSA respectfully brings modernity to a rural space through progressive and cutting-edge practices, all considering local nuances.
MSA is a nonprofit that's self sustaining, educative, caring, and mostly, a space for marginalized communities.
Portraitures of a powerhouse.
THE GARMENT WORKER PROJECT.
Our founder initiated The Garment Worker Project, which captured the less visible side of fashion.
We invited fashion photographer Dan Smith and documentary filmmaker, Kent Mathews, to MSA Ethos.