1. You say that the incensum model is entirely voluntary. Your trading partners can choose not to participate in the "market pay-back" scheme. In that case, how can you guarantee your employees increased wages through the Incensum model? How can a voluntary programme guarantee any results? X Our primary aim is to do business. That is the reason the market pay-back scheme of the Incensum model is non-mandatory.  In this model, we do not demand any premiums on the prices to support the Incensum Employees Fund.  A returning customer of ours will surely know the profitability of our products.  If the product does not sell, traders won`t return to purchase again.  When they return, they will have to choose whether to participate in the Incensum Employees Fund (IEF) or not. Irrespective of their choice, we may still continue trading with returning customers.   However, we offer a range of other services including an listing in this site with dedicated web pages for each of our stores and resellers.  If an importer wishes not to co-operate in the Incensum Model, that importer and his/her client stores will not be listed in our store locator.  Stores could also decide whether to purchase our goods from an “unlisted” importer or from a competing importer who is participating in our programme or even directly from us. The same rule applies to stores as consumers could easily see from this site if a store is co-operating in this programme.  We expect this situation to act as a market force that may influence the decision making process of importers and store owners.

2. How does one know the money actually arrived to the beneficiaries on time? X The details of the pay-back funds will be publicly displayed in this site at the Incensum Employees Fund page. This page is regularly updated. We are working on a plan to link to this site, the online access to the account of the Incensum Employees Fund. We expect a public online access to the bank account of the Incensum Employees Fund possible by early 2008.  This process could also be the most transparent of any such programmes.

3. What does the Incensum Model mean in real money terms for an Incensum Employee? X As stated before, this is essentially a cash flow model, where by 10% of our export value is paid back to our employees fund which pays salary bonuses to our employees.  Following is a comparative study on some related facts and figures: Incensum cost rise over market supply chain and funds redeemed (for $100 worth of exports). FOB : $100,   WSP : $400   RETAIL : $1200. 2% at FOB and 2% at Whole Sale = $ 2.00 + $ 8.00 = $10.00 In other words, the funds redeemed are 10% of FOB value. Summary of Numbers: Optimum productivity/employee for a daily 8 hr work:  3.0 Kilograms of finished product. Export Value(FOB) of the Produce/Person/Day:  Rs.1600.00 = $40.00 (approximate) Incensum employees` average daily wage(Rs.25/kg):  Rs. 75.00 = $1.875 Wages redeemed as market pay-back/person/day:   Rs. 160.00 = $4.00 (10% of FOB  value) Cumulative daily earnings of an Incensum Employee:  Rs. 235.00 ($6.025) Regional daily wages for women for incense industry: Rs 40.00 ($1.025) Actual rural wages in 4 southern states of  India for Men & Women in Non-Agricultural Sector ~ 1987- 2004 Daily Wages State 1987 - 1988 1993-1994 1999 - 2000 2003-2004 Men Tamil Nadu रु 36.18 रु 46.10 रु 81.30 रु 93.14 Women Tamil Nadu रु 18.20 रु 25.23 रु 35.62 NA Men Karnataka रु 34.18 रु 46.50 रु 58.59 रु 78.48 Women Karnataka रु 22.73 रु 27.64 रु 35.33 NA Men Andhra Pradesh रु 38.60 रु 37.30 रु 50.57 रु 69.47 Women Andhra Pradesh रु 21.58 रु 24.68 रु 30.97 N A Men Kerala रु 74.78 रु 81.35 रु 103.60 रु 182.54 Women Kerala रु 31.86 रु 35.85 रु 54.32 NA Men All  India रु 44.04 रु 47.94 रु 59.52 रु 86.54 Women All  India रु 44.04 रु 47.94 रु 37.29 N A  Sources: 1. "Wages in Rural India: Sources, Trends and Comparability" : Himanshu       Published by: Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Vol. 48, No. 2, April~June, 2005. 2.  The Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour, Government of India.  http://labourbureau.nic.in/WRI-2003-04%20Tables.htm

4. So what is so special about your model? You are just charging a premium, exactly what fair trade proposes? X We do not claim that this programme is special.   This is an experiment, the first of its kind to our knowledge.  This model qualifies all basic principles of fair trade(please see the following questions).  Additionally, it incorporates a market pay-back scheme by which the original wages for the employees are tripled.   The essential difference is in the cash flow pattern.  The aim is to keep low FOB prices, making the product competitive.  Charging a premium on the prices would result in higher FOB prices and hence a less competitive product. Payments to the Incensum Employees Fund are fully accounted for and each payment is automatically responded with a receipt voucher.  In most countries, this will be a tax-free, bonafide expense for businesses. In the Incensum Model there are no "donations" or "contributions" other than the market pay-back.   In this site, you will not see a link that says "Donate" to this programme.  There is also no "labeling" of our products to let consumers know that this product is supporting higher causes.   Our attitude is very clear in this regard:  If the product is competitive and provides value for money to the consumer, it should sell by itself without any labeling.   If it is not competitive, then no labels or models will save the product. In short, we are not a charity organization.  Yes, we do work with some charitable organizations, but that is our private affair.  We may post details on that topic at a later stage.  As stated many times in this site, what charity we do, is not relevant to the product itself.  This program itself is not relevant as far as the product is concerned.  The product will sell if it is really a great product.

5. How do you know that this model is the first of its kind, if yes, do you hold a patent for this model? X We do not know if this project is the fist of its kind.  If you know, kindly notify us, and we shall remove all references to that effect from this site.  We would also be very glad to get in touch with other initiatives like this.  It can be of great help to us to learn from experiences gained from previous models. Regarding, patenting this model, we did spent some thoughts on the issue.  We have decided not to file for patent for the time being.   That is because we are still researching on various development studies conducted in similar models in the south.  However, as you can see, the original article on the Incensum model clearly carries a date of authoring.  Patent filing rules at the US Patent Registration Authority (http://www.uspto.gov/web/patents/authority/ ) may still work in our favour, just in case.

6. By providing huge margins to importers and storeowners, you are undermining your consumers. X Traders usually work at high margins in the Gift and Premium market sector.  There are many reasons for this.  A discussion on that topic is beyond the scope of this site.   Margins available for Incensum trading partners are fully justified and we support the idea of free market economy.  We have come to conclude that many positive aspects of Globalization should be accepted and fully utilized.  This is an experiment to do exactly that.   We presume that `anarchism` at WTO summits is not the way to help the very poor of the third world. We have stated clearly that our idea is to create increased wealth for our employees, our trading partners and ourselves.  At the same time, we understand that the best way to do that is by offering high margins to our partners.  A globalized, free market economy means that we are in a fiercely competitive market with great minds driving far greater causes than ours.  In such a market, to be competitive, our trading partners and stores will need maximum range of pricing options available for their various marketing plans. Regarding `undermining the consumer`, please see the `Perspective of the Incensum Consumer` part in the Incensum Model.   Incensum incense is developed, designed, packed and priced with the end consumer in mind.  The high margins projected for our trading partners and stores are actual figures we arrived at by working backwards from the point of view of the retail consumer.

7. What exactly is fair trade and ethical trade? X Quoted from original sites without permission:  Please follow the links to read more. IFAT: Mission Statement : IFAT is the International Fair Trade Association, the global network of Fair Trade Organizations. IFAT`s mission is to improve the livelihoods and well being of disadvantaged producers by linking and promoting Fair Trade Organizations, and speaking out for greater justice in world trade. Over 350 Fair Trade Organizations in 70 countries form the basis of our network and membership is growing steadily. Approximately 65% of our members are based in the South (that is: Asia, the Middle East, Africa and South America) with the rest coming from North America & the Pacific Rim and Europe. We are truly international! Our members have the concept of Fair Trade at the heart of their mission and at the core of what they do. They come in many shapes and sizes and represent the Fair Trade chain from production to sale. Our members are producer co-operatives and associations, export marketing companies, importers, retailers, national and regional Fair Trade networks and financial institutions, dedicated to Fair Trade principles. http://www.ifat.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9&Itemid=4 Is ethical sourcing the same as fair-trade? ETI`s (Ethical Trading Initiative)members include organizations from the fair-trade movement (see List of ETI Members). But ethical sourcing and fair-trade are different. Ethical sourcing tries to ensure that decent minimum labour standards are met in the production of the whole range of a company`s products. By contrast fair-trade is primarily concerned with the trading relationship, especially those involving small producers in the South. Fair-trade ensures that producers are paid a decent price that at least covers the true costs of production, despite often-serious fluctuations in world commodity prices. Many consumers will always be prepared to buy special fair-trade products, while expecting that mainstream products are safely and decently produced. Does ethical sourcing mean higher prices?  The simple answer is that we don`t know what impact ethical sourcing will have on retail prices. Researchers are studying the cost implications of meeting international standards, but there is still much we do not know. Suppliers of the big retailers are worried that ethical sourcing will squeeze their profit margins, but again there isn`t any hard evidence. Even if we look at the experiences of other similar initiatives such as forest certification, fair-trade and organic certification it is hard to draw conclusions. http://www.ethicaltrade.org/Z/ethtrd/aboutet/faq.shtml Other links to know more about fair trade and ethical trade:   International Fair Trade Association :  http://www.ifat.org/  Fair Trade Federation :  http://www.fairtradefederation.org/index.html Fair Trade Labeling Organizations :  http://www.fairtrade.net/  Ethical Trading Initiative : http://www.ethicaltrade.org/

8. How "FAIR" is Incensum when compared to fair trade businesses? X   As far as principles are concerned, we may very well qualify to be a fair trade business.   There are many subtle diffrences though. This note compares Fair Tarde princiles with core principles at Incensum Incense.   Our remarks are given in italics in Green colour text. For reasons of copyright laws, we cannot paste the entire text of quoted material here; however, the message is fully contained in its original context.  Full  text of fair trade principles and practice could be found here: http://www.fairtradefederation.org/ab_princ.html . FTF Principles and Practices FTF members are committed to the following principles and practices: FAIR WAGES IN THE LOCAL CONTEXT Producers receive fair compensation for their products, which means that workers are paid at least that country`s minimum wage. Since the minimum wage is often not enough for basic survival, whenever feasible, workers are paid a living wage, which enables them to cover basic needs, such as food, shelter, education and health care for their families. Paying fair wages does not necessarily mean that products will cost the consumer more. Since fair trade organizations bypass exploitative middlemen and work directly with producers, they are able to reduce costs and return a greater percentage of the retail price to the producers. In our model, the focus is not on the welfare of the producers, but on the welfare of the EMPLOYEES of the producers from the south. We pay normal or higher than normal wages to the EMPLOYEES, while keeping the producers` margin very low.  Unlike many alternative businesses, we do not just claim we pay DECENT wages to our employees.  We actually PUBLISH the real wages paid to our employees in this site (see question # 3, above).  This has already put a lot of pressure on many alternative businesses to re-consider the way they do business with the 3rd world.  Questions have started to fly as to what   IS  a  DECENT  wage in the context of the relaity of the developing nations?   How ethical it is, to claim to be alternative, if the alternative model generates more "relative-wealth" for the `alternative-traders` than for the employees of the 3rd world who produce merchandise for such alternative models? Incensum model triples our original employee wages, which is double the normal regional wages at the first palce.  In effect, our employee wages are 6 times the regional average wages for the incense industry.    In fact, our employee wages are at par or higher than that of low-level executives in  sub-urban India.  Please refer to question # 3 appearing above for further details on this.  Co-operatives and collecvtive ownerships have a long way to go in terms of efficient management of a business system, before they can make any serious impact on the welfare and development of the 3rd world.  Nevertheless, there are outstanding examples of such success stories.    This is written from the real experiences gained from development models in Kerala-South India, which has succesfully pioneered the idea of co-operatives and collectives even before the Fair Trade movement was born. PARTICIPATORY WORKPLACES Fair trade organizations work primarily with small businesses, democratically-run associations, and/or cooperatives which bring significant benefits to workers and their communities. Cooperatives and producer associations provide a healthy alternative to large-scale manufacturing and sweatshops conditions, where unprotected workers earn below minimum wage and most of the profits flow to foreign investors and local elites who have little interest in ensuring the long term health of the communities in which they work………… We operate in a niche market of premium, hand-made incense. This market is so small that investments in large scale manufacturing is not economically viable.  Almost all incense manufacturing business is classified small scale industry.  We definitely do not qualify to be a sweat shop.  Additionally, our model proposes that the producer work at a low profit than normal, in order to make the product more competitive, returning, more business thus justifying a high volume low margin model. ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY Fair trade organizations engage in environmentally friendly practices which manage and use local resources sustainably……... Incensum incense`s ingredients are 100% derived from plant sources. Non-renewable components present in our products include the wax in the butter paper pouch and the components of the ink, used to print the packaging boxes. Incensum directly discourages urbanistaion and accompanied desertification of natural habitats by promoting rural cottage industry, without disrupting the local socio-ecological balance. Other wise, like other businesses, we too are contributing to the various maladies that plague our planet.  Human beings, by virtue of being human beings alone is a damage to this planet, except other wise one lives in a tree, naked, eating nuts and fruits.  We are responsible though, our employees are aware of issues of sustainability and eco systems. FINANCIAL AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT Small-scale farmers and artisans in the developing world lack access to affordable financing. FTF members that buy products directly from producers often provide financial assistance either through direct loans, prepayment or link producers with sources of financing……….. Incensum, is 100% pre financed; partly by its buyers, and partly by the Export Import Bank of India. The EXIM bank helps facilitating trade between fair trade buyers and small scale producers in India. (  http://www.eximbankindia.com/ ) CONSUMER EDUCATION Fair trade organizations educate consumers about the importance of purchasing fairly traded products which support living wages and healthy working conditions………... This site is the first step in that direction. In fact, to our understanding, this site contains more accurate information about incense and the Indian incense industry than any other resource in the web. RESPECT FOR CULTURAL IDENTITY Fair trade organizations encourage the production and development of products based on producers` cultural traditions, as adapted for Western markets. They seek to promote producers` artistic talents in a way that preserves cultural identity. Incense making is a traditional handicraft of many indigenous societies. It is very much a legacy of ancient civilizations. India is one of the few places on the world where this tradition is still preserved and thriving over a millennia. In rural south India,, especially in Tamil nadu and Karnataka, incense making is a village level, decentralized, broker ridden, exploitative trade, driving to feed the market’ demand for commercial grade incense. Project Incensum attempts to plough a different furrow in this field. PUBLIC ACCOUNTABILITY FTF members` finances, management policies, and business practices are open to the public and monitoring by the Fair Trade Federation. What we do, is posted and regularly updated in this site. That includes financial transactions also. At a future stage, the crucial part of this project, the Incensum Employees Fund bank account will be accessible for public to view. However, we are committed to protect our customers’ data from any kind of scrutiny whatsoever, except other wise summoned by a court of law.

9. All these plans are workable only if the product sells consistently. So it is not sure if this product will indeed succeed and these plans will work? X Incensum incense was conceived in the year 2000.  The fragrances and their aromatics were researched over a period of over 4 years. Our first generation samples were released in October 2004.  Ever since all the fragrances we carry were sampled many generations, up to 5, usually.  Some fragrances like Sage went over a dozen trials, before we got the formula we wanted.  Some are still being reviewed and constantly updated.  These tests were done in many countries in different weather conditions, as well as in controlled conditions. We have sampled incenses made in the US, France, New Zealand, Tibet, China, Nepal, India, Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Indonesia and Vietnam. We know that Incensum is among the very best there is. If you use our incense please do post a review of our products in the "Praise and Criticism" page. We believe there are enough good people in this world.  We also believe that an eco friendly product should cost less than a non-eco-friendly product.  Same with fair trade and other alternative models. Why should alternative models be more expensive and elitist? Incensum also attempts to de-bunk the idea of `elitist activism`. How ever, we suggest that our incense be purchased for its quality of fragrance rather than any cause we represent or any business model we propose.  Our employees make a top class product and we are proud if it.   Incensum incense, in our view, is the best in its category in terms of fragrance quality and value for money.